Surgical instrument

ABSTRACT

Provided are surgical instruments, and more particularly, surgical instruments that may be manually operated to perform laparoscopic operations or various surgical operations.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to surgical instruments, and moreparticularly, to surgical instruments that may be manually operated toperform laparoscopic operations or various surgical operations.

BACKGROUND ART

A surgical operation is an operation for curing a disease by cutting,incising, and processing skin, membranes, or other tissues by usingmedical instruments. However, open surgery, which cuts and opens theskin of a surgical region and cures, shapes, or removes an organtherein, may cause bleeding, side effects, pain, scars, or the like.Therefore, a surgical operation, which is performed by forming a holethrough the skin and inserting a medical instrument, for example, alaparoscope, a surgical instrument, or a surgical microscope thereinto,or a robotic surgical operation have recently become popularalternatives.

The surgical instrument is an instrument for performing, by a surgeon,an operation on a surgical region by operating an end tool, which isinstalled at one end of a shaft inserted into a hole formed through theskin, by using an operator or by using a robotic arm. The end toolprovided in the surgical instrument performs a rotating operation, agripping operation, a cutting operation, or the like through apredetermined structure.

However, since a conventional surgical instrument uses an unbendable endtool, it is not suitable for accessing a surgical region and performingvarious surgical operations. In order to solve this problem, a surgicalinstrument having a bendable end tool has been developed. However, anoperation of an operator for bending the end tool to perform a surgicaloperation is not intuitively identical to an actual bending operation ofthe end tool for performing the surgical operation. Therefore, forsurgical operators, it is difficult to perform an intuitive operationand it takes a long time to learn how to use the surgical instrument.

Information disclosed in this Background section was already known tothe inventors of the present invention before achieving the presentinvention or is technical information acquired in the process ofachieving the present invention. Therefore, it may contain informationthat does not form the prior art that is already known in this countryto a person of ordinary skill in the art.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Technical Problem

The present invention provides a surgical instrument that is configuredto intuitively match an actual operation of bending an end tool orperforming a surgical operation with a corresponding operation of anoperator. More particularly, to this end, the present invention providesan end tool having various degrees of freedom, an operator configured tointuitively control an operation of the end tool, and an operating forcetransmitter configured to transmit an operating force of the operator sothat the end tool may operate in accordance with an operation of theoperator.

Technical Solution

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided asurgical instrument including: an end tool formed to rotate in two ormore directions; an operator controlling an operation of the end tool;an operating force transmitter including one or more wires and one ormore pulleys transmitting an operation of the operator to the end tool;and a connector having one end portion coupled to the end tool and theother end portion coupled to the operator to connect the operator andthe end tool, wherein at least a portion of the operator is formed toextend toward the end tool, and when the operator is rotated in the twoor more directions, the end tool rotates in substantially the samedirection as an operation direction of the operator.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is providedan end tool of a surgical instrument, including: a first jaw and asecond jaw operating independently of each other; and an end toolcontrol member including: a J11 pulley coupled with the first jaw andformed to rotate around a first axis; a J12 pulley and a J14 pulleyformed to rotate around an axis making a predetermined angle with thefirst axis and formed to face each other; a J13 pulley and a J15 pulleyformed to rotate around an axis making a predetermined angle with thefirst axis and formed to face each other; a J21 pulley coupled with thesecond jaw and formed to face the J11 pulley; a J22 pulley and a J24pulley formed to rotate around an axis making a predetermined angle withthe first axis and formed to face each other; and a J23 pulley and a J25pulley formed to rotate around an axis making a predetermined angle withthe first axis and formed to face each other, wherein at least a portionof a first jaw operating wire sequentially contacts the J13 pulley, theJ12 pulley, the J11 pulley, the J14 pulley, and the J15 pulley to rotatethe J11 pulley and the J15 pulley, and at least a portion of a secondjaw operating wire sequentially contacts the J23 pulley, the J22 pulley,the J21 pulley, the J24 pulley, and the J25 pulley to rotate the J21pulley and the J25 pulley.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provideda surgical instrument including: an end tool including a first jaw and asecond jaw operating independently of each other; an operatorcontrolling operations of the first and second jaws of the end tool; anoperating force transmitter including a first jaw operating wireconnected with the operator to transmit a rotation of the operator tothe first jaw and a second jaw operating wire connected with theoperator to transmit a rotation of the operator to the second jaw; and aconnector having one end portion coupled to the end tool and the otherend portion coupled to the operator to connect the operator and the endtool, wherein at least a portion of the operator is formed to extendtoward the end tool, and an operation direction of the operator and anoperation direction of the end tool are intuitively identical to eachother.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provideda surgical instrument including: an end tool including a first jaw and asecond jaw operating independently of each other; an operatorcontrolling operations of the first and second jaws of the end tool; anoperating force transmitter including a pitch wire connected with theoperator to transmit a pitch motion of the operator to the end tool, ayaw wire connected with the operator to transmit a yaw motion of theoperator to the end tool, and an actuation wire connected with theoperator to transmit an actuation motion of the operator to the endtool; and a connector having one end portion coupled to the end tool andthe other end portion coupled to the operator to connect the operatorand the end tool, wherein at least a portion of the operator is formedto extend toward the end tool, and an operation direction of theoperator and an operation direction of the end tool are intuitivelyidentical to each other.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provideda surgical instrument including: an end tool including a first jaw and asecond jaw operating independently of each other; an operatorcontrolling operations of the first and second jaws of the end tool; anoperating force transmitter including a pitch wire connected with theoperator to transmit a pitch motion of the operator to the end tool, afirst jaw operating wire connected with the operator to transmit arotation of the operator to the first jaw, and a second jaw operatingwire connected with the operator to transmit a rotation of the operatorto the second jaw; and a connector having one end portion coupled to theend tool and the other end portion coupled to the operator to connectthe operator and the end tool, wherein at least a portion of theoperator is formed to extend toward the end tool, and an operationdirection of the operator and an operation direction of the end tool areintuitively identical to each other.

Advantageous Effects

According to the present invention, since an operation direction of theoperator by a surgical operator and an operation direction of the endtool are intuitively identical to each other, the convenience of thesurgical operator may be improved, and the accuracy, reliability, andthe quickness of a surgical operation may be improved.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to a firstembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a detailed internal view of the surgical instrument of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of an operator of the surgical instrument ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 3A illustrates various modifications of the operator of thesurgical instrument according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 4A is a detailed view of a first differential pulley of thesurgical instrument of FIG. 2, and FIG. 4B is a detailed view of asecond differential pulley of the surgical instrument of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a detailed view of an end tool of the surgical instrument ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 5A illustrates a modification of the end tool of FIG. 5;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view illustrating a pitch operation of thesurgical instrument of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to amodification of the end tool of the first embodiment illustrated in FIG.1;

FIG. 8 is a detailed view of an end tool of the surgical instrument ofFIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to amodification of the operator of the first embodiment illustrated in FIG.1;

FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to amodification of an operator control member of the first embodimentillustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to amodification of an end tool control member of the first embodimentillustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 12 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to amodification of the end tool control member and the operator controlmember of the first embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 13 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according toanother modification of the end tool control member of the firstembodiment illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 14 is a bottom perspective view of the end tool control member ofFIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a view illustrating a first modification of a differentialpulley of the surgical instrument illustrated in FIG. 2;

FIGS. 16 and 17 are views illustrating an operation of the firstmodification of the differential pulley illustrated in FIG. 15;

FIG. 18 is a view illustrating a second modification of the differentialpulley of the surgical instrument illustrated in FIG. 2;

FIGS. 19 and 20 are views illustrating an operation of the secondmodification of the differential pulley illustrated in FIG. 18;

FIGS. 21A to 21E are views illustrating other examples of the secondmodification of the differential pulley illustrated in FIG. 18;

FIGS. 22 and 23 are views illustrating a third modification of thedifferential pulley of the surgical instrument illustrated in FIG. 2;

FIG. 24 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to amodification of an operating force transmitter of the surgicalinstrument illustrated in FIG. 2;

FIG. 25 is a detailed view of a differential gear of FIG. 24;

FIG. 26 is a view illustrating a first modification of the differentialgear of FIG. 24;

FIG. 27 is a view illustrating a second modification of the differentialgear of FIG. 24;

FIG. 28 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to asecond embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 29 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to amodification of a differential pulley of the second embodimentillustrated in FIG. 28;

FIG. 30 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to athird embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 31 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to amodification of the third embodiment illustrated in FIG. 30;

FIG. 32 is an exploded perspective view of an end tool included in asurgical instrument 400 according to a fourth embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 33 is an XZ-plane side view of the end tool;

FIG. 34 is an XY-plane plan view of the end tool;

FIG. 35 is a plan view illustrating a yaw motion of the end tool of FIG.34;

FIG. 36 is a plan view illustrating an actuation motion of the end toolof FIG. 34;

FIG. 37 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to afourth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 38 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to afifth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 39 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to asixth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 40 is an XZ-plane side view of an end tool included in a surgicalinstrument 700 according to a seventh embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 41 is an XY-plane plan view of the end tool of FIG. 40;

FIG. 42 is a plan view illustrating a yaw motion of the end tool of FIG.41;

FIG. 43 is a plan view illustrating an actuation motion of the end toolof FIG. 41;

FIG. 44 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to aseventh embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 45 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to aneighth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 46 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to amodification of a differential pulley of the eighth embodimentillustrated in FIG. 45; and

FIG. 47 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument according to aninth embodiment of the present invention.

BEST MODE

The present invention may include various embodiments and modifications,and exemplary embodiments thereof are illustrated in the drawings andwill be described herein in detail. However, it will be understood thatthe present invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments andincludes all modifications, equivalents and substitutions falling withinthe spirit and scope of the present invention. In the followingdescription, detailed descriptions of well-known functions orconfigurations will be omitted since they would unnecessarily obscurethe subject matters of the present invention.

Although terms such as “first” and “second” may be used herein todescribe various elements or components, these elements or componentsshould not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used todistinguish one element or component from another element or component.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the inventiveconcept. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” areintended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearlyindicates otherwise. It will be understood that terms such as“comprise”, “include”, and “have”, when used herein, specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, or combinations thereof, but do not preclude the presence oraddition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations,elements, components, or combinations thereof.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described indetail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the followingdescription, like reference numerals denote like elements, and redundantdescriptions thereof will be omitted.

Also, it will be understood that various embodiments of the presentinvention may be interpreted or implemented in combination, andtechnical features of each embodiment may be interpreted or implementedin combination with technical features of other embodiments.

First Embodiment of Surgical Instrument E3+H1+D3

FIG. 1 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 100 according to afirst embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a detailedinternal view of the surgical instrument 100 of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the surgical instrument 100 according to afirst embodiment of the present invention includes an operator 110, anend tool 120, an operating force transmitter 130, and a connector 140.Herein, the connector 140 may be formed to have a shape of a hollowshaft, so that one or more wires (which will be described later) may beaccommodated therein. The operator 110 may be coupled to one end portionof the connector 140, and the end tool 120 may be coupled to the otherend portion of the connector 140, so that the connector 140 may connectthe operator 110 and the end tool 120.

In detail, the operator 110 is formed at one end portion of theconnector 140 and is provided as an interface having, for example, atweezers shape, a stick shape, or a lever shape, which may be directlyoperated by a surgical operator. When a surgical operator operates theoperator 110, the end tool 120, which is connected to the interface andis inserted into the body of a surgical patient, performs an operation,thereby performing a surgical operation. Although FIG. 1 illustratesthat the operator 110 is formed to have a tweezers shape, the presentinvention is not limited thereto, and the operator 110 may have variousshapes that may be connected with the end tool 120 to operate the endtool 120.

The end tool 120 is formed at the other end portion of the connector 140and is inserted into a surgical region to perform a necessary surgicaloperation. As an example of the end tool 120, a pair of jaws, namely,first and second jaws 121 and 122, may be used to perform a gripoperation, as illustrated in FIG. 1. However, the present invention isnot limited thereto, and various surgical devices may be used as the endtool 120. For example, a one-armed cautery may be used as the end tool120. The end tool 120 is connected with the operator 110 by theoperating force transmitter 130 to receive an operating force of theoperator 110 through the operating force transmitter 130, therebyperforming a necessary surgical operation such as a grip, cutting, orsuturing. Herein, the end tool 120 of the surgical instrument 100according to the first embodiment of the present invention is formed torotate in two or more directions. For example, the end tool 120 may beformed to perform a pitch motion around a Y axis of FIG. 1 and alsoperform a yaw motion and an actuation motion around a Z axis of FIG. 1.This will be described later in detail.

The operating force transmitter 130 connects the operator 110 and theend tool 120 to transmit an operating force of the operator 110 to theend tool 120 and may include a plurality of wires and pulleys.

Hereinafter, the operator 110, the end tool 120, and the operating forcetransmitter 130 of the surgical instrument 100 of FIG. 1 will bedescribed in more detail.

(Operator)

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the operator 110 of the surgicalinstrument 100 of FIG. 2.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, the operator 110 of the surgicalinstrument 100 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention includes a pitch operator 111 controlling a pitch motion ofthe end tool 120, a yaw operator 112 controlling a yaw motion of the endtool 120, and an actuation operator 113 controlling an actuation motionof the end tool 120.

A pitch operation, a yaw operation, and an actuation operation used inthe present invention are summarized as follows:

First, the pitch operation refers to a vertical motion with respect toan extension direction (an X-axis direction of FIG. 1) of the connector140, that is, an operation of rotating around the Y axis of FIG. 1. Inother words, the pitch operation refers to a vertical rotation of theend tool 120, which is formed to extend in the extension direction (theX-axis direction of FIG. 1) of the connector 140, around the Y axis. Theyaw operation refers to a horizontal motion with respect to theextension direction (the X-axis direction of FIG. 1) of the connector140, that is, an operation of rotating around the Z axis of FIG. 1. Inother words, the yaw operation refers to a horizontal rotation of theend tool 120, which is formed to extend in the extension direction (theX-axis direction of FIG. 1) of the connector 140, around the Z axis. Theactuation operation refers a folding or unfolding operation of the firstand second jaws 121 and 122 when the first and second jaws 121 and 122rotate in opposite directions while rotating around the same rotatingaxis as the yaw operation. That is, the actuation operation refers torotations of the first and second jaws 121 and 122, which is formed atthe end tool 120, in opposite directions around the Z axis.

Herein, when the operator 110 of the surgical instrument 100 is rotatedin one direction, the end tool 120 rotates in a direction that isintuitively identical to an operation direction of the operator 110. Inother words, when the pitch operator 111 of the operator 110 rotates inone direction, the end tool 120 rotates in a direction intuitivelyidentical to the one direction to perform a pitch operation, and the endtool 120 rotates in the direction intuitively identical to the onedirection to perform a yaw operation. Herein, it may be said that theintuitively identical direction refers to a case where a movementdirection of an index finger of a user gripping the operator 110 issubstantially identical to a movement direction of the end portion ofthe end tool 120. In addition, the identical direction may not be anexactly identical direction on a three-dimensional coordinate system.For example, the identical direction may refer to a case where when theindex finger of the user moves to the left, the end portion of the endtool 120 also moves to the left, and when the index finger of the usermoves to the right, the end portion of the end tool 120 also moves tothe right.

To this end, in the surgical instrument 100, the operator 110 and theend tool 120 are formed in the same direction with respect to a planeperpendicular to an extension axis (X axis) of the connector 140. Thatis, in view of a YZ plane of FIG. 1, the operator 110 is formed toextend in a +X-axis direction, and the end tool 120 is also formed toextend in the +X-axis direction. In other words, it may be said that aformation direction of the end tool 120 at one end portion of theconnector 140 may be identical to a formation direction of the operator110 at the other end portion of the connector 140 in view of the YZplane. In other words, it may be said that the operator 110 is formed toextend away from a body of the user gripping the operator 110, that is,the operator 110 is formed to extend toward the end tool 120.

In detail, in the case of a surgical instrument of the related art, anoperation direction of an operator by a user is different from and isnot intuitively identical to an actual operation direction of an endtool. Therefore, a surgical operator has difficulty in performing anintuitive operation and it takes a long time to skillfully move the endtool in a desired direction. Also, in some cases, a faulty operation mayoccur, thus damaging a surgical patient.

In order to solve such problems, the surgical instrument 100 accordingto the first embodiment of the present invention is configured such thatan operation direction of the operator 110 is intuitively identical toan operation direction of the end tool 120. To this end, the operator110 and the end tool 120 are formed on the same side in view of the YZplane including a pitch operating axis 1111. This will be describedbelow in more detail.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, the operator 110 of the surgicalinstrument 100 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention includes the pitch operator 111 controlling a pitch motion ofthe end tool 120, a yaw operator 112 controlling a yaw motion of the endtool 120, and an actuation operator 113 controlling an actuation motionof the end tool 120.

The pitch operator 111 includes the pitch operating axis 1111 and apitch operating bar 1112. Herein, the pitch operating axis 1111 may beformed in a direction parallel to the Y axis, and the pitch operatingbar 1112 may be connected with the pitch operating axis 1111 to rotatealong with the pitch operating axis 1111. For example, when the usergrips and rotates the pitch operating bar 1112, the pitch operating axis1111 connected with the pitch operating bar 1112 rotates along with thepitch operating bar 1112. Then, the resulting rotating force istransmitted to the end tool 120 through the operating force transmitter130, so that the end tool 120 rotates in the same direction as therotation direction of the pitch operating axis 1111. That is, when thepitch operator 111 rotates in the clockwise direction around the pitchoperating axis 1111, the end tool 120 also rotates in the clockwisedirection around an axis parallel to the pitch operating axis 1111, andwhen the pitch operator 111 rotates in the counterclockwise directionaround the pitch operating axis 1111, the end tool 120 also rotates inthe counterclockwise direction around the axis parallel to the pitchoperating axis 1111.

The yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 are formed on oneend portion of the pitch operating bar 1112 of the pitch operator 111.Thus, when the pitch operator 111 rotates around the pitch operatingaxis 1111, the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 alsorotate along with the pitch operator 111. FIGS. 1 and 3 illustrate astate in which the pitch operating bar 1112 of the pitch operator 111 isperpendicular to the connector 140, while FIG. 2 illustrates a state inwhich the pitch operating bar 1112 of the pitch operator 111 is at anangle to the connector 140.

Therefore, a coordinate system of the yaw operator 112 and the actuationoperator 113 is not fixed, but relatively changes according to therotation of the pitch operator 111. As illustrated in FIG. 1, since ayaw operating axis 1121 of the yaw operator 112 and an actuationoperating axis 1131 of the actuation operator 113 are parallel to the Zaxis, the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 rotate aroundan axis parallel to the Z axis. However, as illustrated in FIG. 2, whenthe pitch operator 111 rotates, the yaw operating axis 1121 of the yawoperator 112 and the actuation operating axis 1131 of the actuationoperator 113 are not parallel to the Z axis. That is, the coordinatesystem of the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 changeaccording to the rotation of the pitch operator 111. However, forconvenience of description, the coordinate system of the yaw operator112 and the actuation operator 113 will be described on the assumptionthat the pitch operating bar 1112 is perpendicular to the connector 140as illustrated in FIG. 1.

The yaw operator 112 includes the yaw operating axis 1121 and a yawoperating bar 1122. Herein, the yaw operating axis 1121 may be formed tobe at a predetermined angle to an XY plane where the connector 140 isformed. For example, the yaw operating axis 1121 may be formed in adirection parallel to the Z axis as illustrated in FIG. 1, and when thepitch operator 111 rotates, the coordinate system of the yaw operator112 may relatively change as described above. However, the presentinvention is not limited thereto, and the yaw operating axis 1121 may beformed in various directions by ergonomic design according to thestructure of a hand of the user gripping the yaw operator 112. The yawoperating bar 1122 is connected with the yaw operating axis 1121 torotate along with the yaw operating axis 1121. For example, when theuser holds and rotates the yaw operating bar 1122 with the index finger,the yaw operating axis 1121 connected with the yaw operating bar 1122rotates along with the yaw operating bar 1122. Then, the resultingrotating force is transmitted to the end tool 120 through the operatingforce transmitter 130, so that the first and second jaws 121 and 122 ofthe end tool 120 horizontally rotate in the same direction as therotation direction of the yaw operating axis 1121.

A first pulley 1121 a and a second pulley 1121 b may be formedrespectively at both end portions of the yaw operating axis 1121. A YC1wire 135YC1 may be connected to the first pulley 1121 a, and a YC2 wire135YC2 may be connected to the second pulley 1121 b.

The actuation operator 113 includes the actuation operating axis 1131and an actuation operating bar 1132. Herein, the actuation operatingaxis 1131 may be formed to be at a predetermined angle to the XY planewhere the connector 140 is formed. For example, the actuation operatingaxis 1131 may be formed in a direction parallel to the Z axis asillustrated in FIG. 1, and when the pitch operator 111 rotates, thecoordinate system of the actuation operator 113 may relatively change asdescribed above. However, the present invention is not limited thereto,and the actuation operating axis 1131 may be formed in variousdirections by ergonomic design according to the structure of the hand ofthe user gripping the actuation operator 113. The actuation operatingbar 1132 is connected with the actuation operating axis 1131 to rotatealong with the actuation operating axis 1131. For example, when the userholds and rotates the actuation operating bar 1132 with the thumbfinger, the actuation operating axis 1131 connected with the actuationoperating bar 1132 rotates along with the actuation operating bar 1132.Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted to the end tool 120through the operating force transmitter 130, so that the first andsecond jaws 121 and 122 of the end tool 120 perform an actuationoperation. Herein, as described above, the actuation operation refers toan operation of folding or unfolding the first and second jaws 121 and122 by rotating the first and second jaws 121 and 122 in oppositedirections. That is, when the actuation operator 113 is rotated in onedirection, as the first jaw 121 rotates in the counterclockwisedirection and the second jaw 122 rotates in the clockwise direction, theend tool 120 is folded; and when the actuation operator 113 is rotatedin the opposite direction, as the first jaw 121 rotates in the clockwisedirection and the second jaw 122 rotates in the counterclockwisedirection, the end tool 120 is unfolded.

A first pulley 1131 a and a second pulley 1131 b may be formedrespectively at both end portions of the actuation operating axis 1131.An AC1 wire 135AC1 may be connected to the first pulley 1131 a, and anAC2 wire 135AC2 may be connected to the second pulley 1131 b.

Referring to FIG. 3, the pitch operator 111 and the end tool 120 areformed on the same or parallel axis (X axis) in the surgical instrument100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. That is,the pitch operating axis 1111 of the pitch operator 111 is formed at oneend portion of the connector 140, and the end tool 120 is formed at theother end portion of the connector 140. Although it is illustrated thatthe connector 140 is formed to have a shape of a straight line, thepresent invention is not limited thereto. For example, the connector 140may be curved with a predetermined curvature, or may be bent one or moretimes. Also in this case, it may be said that the pitch operator 111 andthe end tool 120 are formed on substantially the same or parallel axis.Although FIG. 3 illustrates that the pitch operator 111 and the end tool120 are formed on the same axis (X axis), the present invention is notlimited thereto. For example, the pitch operator 111 and the end tool120 may be formed on different axes. This will be described later indetail.

The operator 110 of the surgical instrument 100 according to the firstembodiment of the present invention further includes an operator controlmember 115 engaged with the pitch operating axis 1111 of the pitchoperator 111. The operator control member 115 may include a relay pulley115 a. Since the configuration of the operator control member 115 issubstantially identical to the configuration of the end tool 120, therelations between the operator control member 115 and other elements ofthe operator 110 and an end tool control member 123 will be describedlater.

FIG. 3A illustrates various modifications of the operator 110 of thesurgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention.

As for H1 of FIG. 3A, as described with reference to FIG. 3, (1) sincethe yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 of the operator 110are formed independently of each other, the rotation of one of the yawoperator 112 and the actuation operator 113 does not affect the rotationof the other of the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113, (2)the pitch operator 111 is disposed under the plane formed by the yawoperator 112 and the actuation operator 113, and (3) the yaw operator112 and the actuation operator 113 are formed over an extension line ofthe end tool 120. H1 may be seen in the first, fourth, and seventhembodiments of the present invention.

As for H2 of FIG. 3A, (1) since the actuation operator 113 of theoperator 110 is formed on the yaw operator 112, when the yaw operator112 rotates, the actuation operator 113 also rotates, (2) the pitchoperator 111 is disposed under the plane formed by the yaw operator 112and the actuation operator 113, and (3) the yaw operator 112 and theactuation operator 113 are formed over the extension line of the endtool 120. H2 may be seen in the second, fifth, and eighth embodiments ofthe present invention.

As for H3 of FIG. 3A, (1) a first jaw operator 112 and a second jawoperator 113, which rotate independently of each other, are formed inthe operator 110, (2) the pitch operator 111 is disposed under the planeformed by the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113, and (3)the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 are formed over theextension line of the end tool 120. H3 may be seen in the third, sixth,and ninth embodiments of the present invention.

As for H4 of FIG. 3A, (1) since the yaw operator 112 and the actuationoperator 113 of the operator 110 are formed independently of each other,the rotation of one of the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator113 does not affect the rotation of the other of the yaw operator 112and the actuation operator 113, (2) the pitch operator 111 is disposedon a plane identical to or adjacent to the plane formed by the yawoperator 112 and the actuation operator 113 such that the pitch operator111 is more adjacent to the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator113 as compared to the H1 case, and (3) the yaw operator 112 and theactuation operator 113 are formed over the extension line of the endtool 120. H4 may be seen in detail in FIG. 9.

As for H5 of FIG. 3A, (1) since the actuation operator 113 of theoperator 110 is formed on the yaw operator 112, when the yaw operator112 rotates, the actuation operator 113 also rotates, (2) the pitchoperator 111 is disposed on a plane identical to or adjacent to theplane formed by the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 suchthat the pitch operator 111 is more adjacent to the yaw operator 112 andthe actuation operator 113 as compared to the H2 case, and (3) the yawoperator 112 and the actuation operator 113 are formed over theextension line of the end tool 120.

As for H6 of FIG. 3A, (1) a first jaw operator 112 and a second jawoperator 113, which rotate independently of each other, are formed inthe operator 110, (2) the pitch operator 111 is disposed on a planeidentical to or adjacent to the plane formed by the yaw operator 112 andthe actuation operator 113 such that the pitch operator 111 is moreadjacent to the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 ascompared to the H3 case, and (3) the yaw operator 112 and the actuationoperator 113 are formed over the extension line of the end tool 120.

As for H7 of FIG. 3A, (1) since the yaw operator 112 and the actuationoperator 113 of the operator 110 are formed independently of each other,the rotation of one of the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator113 does not affect the rotation of the other of the yaw operator 112and the actuation operator 113, (2) the pitch operator 111 is disposedunder the plane formed by the yaw operator 112 and the actuationoperator 113, and (3) the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator113 are formed on the extension line of the end tool 120.

As for H8 of FIG. 3A, (1) since the actuation operator 113 of theoperator 110 is formed on the yaw operator 112, when the yaw operator112 rotates, the actuation operator 113 also rotates, (2) the pitchoperator 111 is disposed under the plane formed by the yaw operator 112and the actuation operator 113, and (3) the yaw operator 112 and theactuation operator 113 are formed on the extension line of the end tool120.

As for H9 of FIG. 3A, (1) a first jaw operator 112 and a second jawoperator 113, which rotate independently of each other, are formed inthe operator 110, (2) the pitch operator 111 is disposed under the planeformed by the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113, and (3)the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 are formed on theextension line of the end tool 120.

As for H10 of FIG. 3A, (1) since the yaw operator 112 and the actuationoperator 113 of the operator 110 are formed independently of each other,the rotation of one of the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator113 does not affect the rotation of the other of the yaw operator 112and the actuation operator 113, (2) the pitch operator 111 is disposedon a plane identical to or adjacent to the plane formed by the yawoperator 112 and the actuation operator 113 such that the pitch operator111 is more adjacent to the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator113 as compared to the H7 case, and (3) the yaw operator 112 and theactuation operator 113 are formed on the extension line of the end tool120.

As for H11 of FIG. 3A, (1) since the actuation operator 113 of theoperator 110 is formed on the yaw operator 112, when the yaw operator112 rotates, the actuation operator 113 also rotates, (2) the pitchoperator 111 is disposed on a plane identical to or adjacent to theplane formed by the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 suchthat the pitch operator 111 is more adjacent to the yaw operator 112 andthe actuation operator 113 as compared to the H8 case, and (3) the yawoperator 112 and the actuation operator 113 are formed on the extensionline of the end tool 120.

As for H12 of FIG. 3A, (1) a first jaw operator 112 and a second jawoperator 113, which rotate independently of each other, are formed inthe operator 110, (2) the pitch operator 111 is disposed on a planeidentical to or adjacent to the plane formed by the yaw operator 112 andthe actuation operator 113 such that the pitch operator 111 is moreadjacent to the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 ascompared to the H9 case, and (3) the yaw operator 112 and the actuationoperator 113 are formed on the extension line of the end tool 120.

In addition to the above modifications, various other modifications ofthe operator 110 may be applicable to the surgical instrument of thepresent invention.

(Operating Force Transmitter)

FIG. 4A is a detailed view of a first differential pulley 131 of thesurgical instrument 100 of FIG. 2, and FIG. 4B is a detailed view of asecond differential pulley of the surgical instrument 100 of FIG. 2.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 4A, and 4B, the operating force transmitter 130of the surgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention includes first and second differential pulleys 131 and132, a plurality of pulleys, and a plurality of wires 135YC1, 135YC2,135J11, 135J12, 135J13, 135J21, 135J22, and 135J23.

First, the first differential pulley 131 of the operating forcetransmitter 130 will be described below.

As described above, the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113are formed on one end portion of the pitch operating bar 1112 of thepitch operator 111. Thus, when the pitch operator 111 rotates around thepitch operating axis 1111, the yaw operator 112 and the actuationoperator 113 also rotate along with the pitch operator 111. Also, theyaw operator 112 is connected with the first jaw 121 and the second jaw122 to operate the first jaw 121 and the second jaw 122, and theactuation operator 113 is connected with the first jaw 121 and thesecond jaw 122 to operate the first jaw 121 and the second jaw 122.However, when the yaw operator 112 is rotated, the first jaw 121 and thesecond jaw 122 have to rotate in the same direction; and when theactuation operator 113 is rotated, the first jaw 121 and the second jaw122 have to rotate in opposite directions. In order to implement thisoperation, a separate structure is required.

Thus, two rotation inputs of the yaw operator 112 and the actuationoperator 113 have to be applied to one jaw. Accordingly, a structure forreceiving two or more inputs and outputting a rotation of one jaw isrequired. In this case, two rotation inputs have to be independent ofeach other.

To this end, the surgical instrument 100 according to the firstembodiment of the present invention includes a differential memberincluding two or more input units and one output unit to receive aninput of rotating forces from two or more input units from the two inputunits, extract a desired rotating force through the sum of or thedifference between the two rotating forces, and output the desiredrotating force through the output unit. The differential member mayinclude a differential pulley using pulleys and wires, and adifferential gear using gears, and a differential pulley is illustratedas an example of the differential member in FIGS. 1, 2, 4A, and 4B.Various embodiments of the differential member are illustrated in FIGS.15 to 27.

In detail, the first differential pulley 131 includes a first input unit1311, a second input unit 1312, and an output unit 1313.

The first input unit 1311 includes a first pulley 1311 a and a secondpulley 1311 b. The first pulley 1311 a and the second pulley 1311 brotate together around the same rotating axis. Herein, the first pulley1311 a of the first input unit 1311 is connected with the first pulley1121 a of the yaw operator 112 by the YC1 wire 135YC1 to transmit arotation of the yaw operator 112 to the first input unit 1311. Also, thesecond pulley 1311 b of the first input unit 1311 is connected with theoutput unit 1313 by the differential control wire 135J11 to transmit arotation of the first input unit 1311 to the output unit 1313.

The second input unit 1312 includes a first pulley 1312 a and a secondpulley 1312 b. The first pulley 1312 a and the second pulley 1312 brotate together around the same rotating axis. Herein, the first pulley1312 a of the second input unit 1312 is connected with the first pulley1131 a of the actuation operator 113 by the AC1 wire 135AC1 to transmita rotation of the actuation operator 113 to the second input unit 1312.Also, the second pulley 1312 b of the second input unit 1312 isconnected with the output unit 1313 by the differential control wire135J11 to transmit a rotation of the second input unit 1312 to theoutput unit 1313.

The output unit 1313 includes an output pulley 1313 a, an extensionportion 1313 b, a first differential control pulley 1313 c, and a seconddifferential control pulley 1313 d. Herein, the output pulley 1313 a ofthe output unit 1313 is connected with the operator control member 115by the J12 wire 135J12 to transmit a rotation of the output unit 1313 tothe first jaw 121 of the end tool 120 through the operator controlmember 115. The extension portion 1313 b extends in one direction from arotating axis of the output pulley 1313 a to rotate along with theoutput pulley 1313 a. The first differential control pulley 1313 c andthe second differential control pulley 1313 d are formed at one endportion of the extension portion 1313 b to face each other and rotatearound both end portions of an axis 1313 e that is formed at apredetermined angle to the rotating axis of the output pulley 1313 a.

Herein, the first input unit 1311, the second input unit 1312, and theoutput unit 1313 rotate independently around independent axes.

The differential control wire 135J11 is wound along the second pulley1311 b of the first input unit 1311, the first differential controlpulley 1313 c of the output unit 1313, the second pulley 1312 b of thesecond input unit 1312, and the second differential control pulley 1313d of the output unit 1313 to transmit a rotation of the first input unit1311 and the second input unit 1312 to the output unit 1313.

Herein, the first differential pulley 131 includes the first input unit1311, the second input unit 1312, and the output unit 1313, receives aninput of rotation amounts from the first input unit 1311 and the secondinput unit 1312, and outputs the sum of the rotation amounts through theoutput unit 1313. That is, when only the first input unit 1311 rotates,the rotation of the first input unit 1311 is output through the outputunit 1313; when only the second input unit 1312 rotates, the rotation ofthe second input unit 1312 is output through the output unit 1313; whenthe first input unit 1311 and the second input unit 1312 rotate in thesame direction, the sum of the rotations of the first input unit 1311and the second input unit 1312 is output through the output unit 1313;and when the first input unit 1311 and the second input unit 1312 rotatein opposite directions, the difference between the rotations of thefirst input unit 1311 and the second input unit 1312 is output throughthe output unit 1313. This may be expressed as the following equation:C=A+B

(where C denotes a rotation of an output unit, A denotes a rotation of afirst input unit, and B denotes a rotation of a second input unit.)

The operation of the first differential pulley 131 will be describedlater in detail.

Like the first differential pulley 131, the second differential pulley132 includes a first input unit 1321, a second input unit 1322, and anoutput unit 1323.

Herein, a first pulley 1321 a of the first input unit 1321 is connectedwith the second pulley 1121 b of the yaw operator 112 by the YC2 wire135YC2 to transmit a rotation of the yaw operator 112 to the first inputunit 1321. Also, a second pulley 1321 b of the first input unit 1321 isconnected with the output unit 1323 by a differential control wire135J21 to transmit a rotation of the first input unit 1321 to the outputunit 1323.

A first pulley 1322 a of the second input unit 1322 is connected withthe second pulley 1131 b of the actuation operator 113 by the AC2 wire135AC2 to transmit a rotation of the actuation operator 113 to thesecond input unit 1322. Also, the second pulley 1322 b of the secondinput unit 1322 is connected with the output unit 1323 by thedifferential control wire 135J21 to transmit a rotation of the secondinput unit 1322 to the output unit 1323.

The output unit 1323 includes an output pulley 1323 a, an extensionportion 1323 b, a first differential control pulley 1323 c, and a seconddifferential control pulley 1323 d. Herein, the output pulley 1323 a ofthe output unit 1323 is connected with the operator control member 115by the J22 wire 135J22 to transmit a rotation of the output unit 1323 tothe second jaw 122 of the end tool 120 through the operator controlmember 115.

Herein, the second differential pulley 132 includes the first input unit1321, the second input unit 1322, and the output unit 1323, receives aninput of rotation amounts from the first input unit 1321 and the secondinput unit 1322, and outputs the sum of the rotation amounts through theoutput unit 1323. That is, when only the first input unit 1321 rotates,the rotation of the first input unit 1321 is output through the outputunit 1323; when only the second input unit 1322 rotates, the rotation ofthe second input unit 1322 is output through the output unit 1323; whenthe first input unit 1321 and the second input unit 1322 rotate in thesame direction, the sum of the rotations of the first input unit 1321and the second input unit 1322 is output through the output unit 1323;and when the first input unit 1321 and the second input unit 1322 rotatein opposite directions, the difference between the rotations of thefirst input unit 1321 and the second input unit 1322 is output throughthe output unit 1323.

The operations of the first differential pulley 131 and the seconddifferential pulley 132 will be described below.

First, a case where only the yaw operator 112 rotates and the actuationoperator 113 does not rotate will be described below.

When the yaw operator 112 rotates in the direction of an arrow Y of FIG.2, the first pulley 1121 a of the yaw operator 112, the YC1 wire 135YC1wound around the first pulley 1121 a, the first pulley 1311 a of thefirst input unit 1311 of the first differential pulley 131 around whichthe YC1 wire 135YC1 is wound, and the second pulley 1311 b connectedwith the first pulley 1311 a rotate together. However, the second inputunit 1312 of the first differential pulley 131 connected with theactuation operator 113 does not rotate. In this manner, when the firstinput unit 1311 of the first differential pulley 131 rotates in thedirection of an arrow R1 of FIG. 4A and the second input unit 1312 doesnot rotate, a portion wound around the first input unit 1311 of thedifferential control wire 135J11 rotates but a portion wound around thesecond input unit 1312 of the differential control wire 135J11 does notrotate. Accordingly, the wire wound around the second input unit 1312 isunwound as much as the rotation of the portion wound around the firstinput unit 1311 of the differential control wire 135J11, and thedifferential control wire 135J11 moves as much. Concurrently, the seconddifferential control pulley 1313 d rotates in the clockwise direction,and the first differential control pulley 1313 c rotates in thecounterclockwise direction. At the same time, the output unit 1313,which includes the output pulley 1313 a, the extension portion 1313 b,the first differential control pulley 1313 c, and the seconddifferential control pulley 1313 d, rotates in the direction of thearrow R1 of FIG. 4A around the rotating axis of the output pulley 1313a. Then, the rotation of the output unit 1313 is transmitted to thefirst jaw 121 of the end tool 120 through the operator control member115, so that the first jaw 121 rotates in the direction of an arrow YJof FIG. 2.

Also, when the yaw operator 112 rotates in the direction of the arrow Yof FIG. 2, the second pulley 1121 b of the yaw operator 112, the YC2wire 135YC2 wound around the second pulley 1121 b, the first pulley 1321a of the first input unit 1321 of the second differential pulley 132around which the YC2 wire 135YC2 is wound, and the second pulley 1321 bconnected with the first pulley 1321 a rotate together. However, thesecond input unit 1322 of the second differential pulley 132 connectedwith the actuation operator 113 does not rotate. In this manner, whenthe first input unit 1321 of the second differential pulley 132 rotatesin the direction of an arrow R3 of FIG. 4B and the second input unit1322 does not rotate, a portion wound around the first input unit 1321of the differential control wire 135J21 rotates but a portion woundaround the second input unit 1322 of the differential control wire135J21 does not rotate. Accordingly, the wire wound around the secondinput unit 1322 is unwound as much as the rotation of the portion woundaround the first input unit 1321 of the differential control wire135J21, and the differential control wire 135J21 moves as much.Concurrently, the second differential control pulley 1323 d rotates inthe clockwise direction, and the first differential control pulley 1323c rotates in the counterclockwise direction. At the same time, theoutput unit 1323, which includes the output pulley 1323 a, the extensionportion 1323 b, the first differential control pulley 1323 c, and thesecond differential control pulley 1323 d, rotates around the rotatingaxis of the output pulley 1323 a in the direction of the arrow R3 ofFIG. 4B. Then, the rotation of the output unit 1323 is transmitted tothe second jaw 122 of the end tool 122 through the operator controlmember 115, so that the second jaw 122 rotates in the direction of thearrow YJ of FIG. 2.

A case where only the actuation operator 113 rotates and the yawoperator 112 does not rotate will be described below.

When the actuation operator 113 rotates in the direction of an arrow Aof FIG. 2, the first pulley 1131 a of the actuation operator 113, theAC1 wire 135AC1 wound around the first pulley 1131 a, the first pulley1312 a of the second input unit 1312 of the first differential pulley131 around which the AC1 wire 135AC1 is wound, and the second pulley1312 b connected with the first pulley 1312 a rotate together. Herein,since the AC1 wire 135AC1 is twisted one time, the rotating force of theactuation operator 113 is reversed and transmitted to the firstdifferential pulley 131. However, the first input unit 1311 of the firstdifferential pulley 131 that is connected with the yaw operator 112 doesnot rotate. In this manner, when the second input unit 1312 of the firstdifferential pulley 131 rotates in a direction opposite to the directionof an arrow R2 of FIG. 4A and the first input unit 1311 does not rotate,a portion wound around the second input unit 1312 of the differentialcontrol wire 135J11 rotates but a portion wound around the first inputunit 1311 of the differential control wire 135J11 does not rotate.Accordingly, the wire wound around the first input unit 1311 is unwoundas much as the rotation of the portion wound around the second inputunit 1312 of the differential control wire 135J11, and the differentialcontrol wire 135J11 moves as much. Concurrently, the second differentialcontrol pulley 1313 d rotates in the counterclockwise direction, and thefirst differential control pulley 1313 c rotates in the clockwisedirection. At the same time, the output unit 1313, which includes theoutput pulley 1313 a, the extension portion 1313 b, the firstdifferential control pulley 1313 c, and the second differential controlpulley 1313 d, rotates around the rotating axis of the output pulley1313 a in a direction opposite to the direction of the arrow R2 of FIG.4A. Then, the rotation of the output unit 1313 is transmitted to thefirst jaw 121 of the end tool 120 through the operator control member115, so that the first jaw 121 rotates in the direction of the arrow YJof FIG. 2.

Also, when the actuation operator 113 rotates in the direction of thearrow A of FIG. 2, the second pulley 1131 b of the actuation operator113, the AC2 wire 135AC2 wound around the second pulley 1131 b, thefirst pulley 1322 a of the second input unit 1322 of the seconddifferential pulley 132 around which the AC2 wire 135AC2 is wound, andthe second pulley 1322 b connected with the first pulley 1322 a rotatetogether. However, the first input unit 1321 of the second differentialpulley 132 that is connected with the yaw operator 112 does not rotate.In this manner, when the second input unit 1322 of the seconddifferential pulley 132 rotates in the direction of an arrow R4 of FIG.4B and the first input unit 1321 does not rotate, a portion wound aroundthe second input unit 1322 of the differential control wire 135J21rotates but a portion wound around the first input unit 1321 of thedifferential control wire 135J21 does not rotate. Accordingly, the wirewound around the first input unit 1321 is unwound as much as therotation of the portion wound around the second input unit 1322 of thedifferential control wire 135J21, and the differential control wire135J21 moves as much. Concurrently, the second differential controlpulley 1323 d rotates in the clockwise direction, and the firstdifferential control pulley 1323 c rotates in the counterclockwisedirection. At the same time, the output unit 1323, which includes theoutput pulley 1323 a, the extension portion 1323 b, the firstdifferential control pulley 1323 c, and the second differential controlpulley 1323 d, rotates around the rotating axis of the output pulley1323 a in the direction of the arrow R4 of FIG. 4B. Then, the rotationof the output unit 1323 is transmitted to the second jaw 122 of the endtool 122 through the operator control member 115, so that the second jaw122 rotates in a direction opposite to the direction of the arrow YJ ofFIG. 2.

That is, when the first jaw 121 rotates in the direction of the arrow YJof FIG. 2 and the second jaw 122 rotates in a direction opposite to thedirection of the arrow YJ of FIG. 2, an actuation operation of the endtool 120 is performed.

There is a case where, in a differential pulley including two inputunits and one output unit, the rotation of one input unit does notgenerate the rotation of the output unit and generates the rotation ofanother input unit. In order to prevent this case, according to thepresent invention, in a situation where two operators are connectedrespectively to two differential pulleys, when one operator is connectedwith two input units of each of two differential pulleys, one of thewires connecting the operator and the input unit is twisted, therebypreventing a situation where the input of one operator causes anotheroperator to rotate.

In order to describe this in more detail, a case where the second inputunit 1312 of the first differential pulley 131 and the second input unit1322 of the second differential pulley 132 also rotate in the samedirection as a rotation input of the yaw operator 112 by the rotationinput of the yaw operator 112 connected to the first input unit 1311 ofthe first differential pulley 131 and the first input unit 1321 of thesecond differential pulley 132 is assumed. In this case, the actuationoperator 113 and the second input unit 1312 of the first differentialpulley 131 are connected by the AC1 wire 135AC1 that is twisted onetime, and the actuation operator 113 and the second input unit 1322 ofthe second differential pulley 132 are connected by the AC2 wire 135AC2that is not twisted. Thus, rotations of the second input units 1312 and1322 of the first and second differential pulleys 131 and 132 rotate theactuation operator 113 in opposite directions by the AC1 wire 135AC1 andthe AC2 wire 135AC2. Therefore, the rotations offset each other and donot rotate the actuation operator 113, and the remaining rotation istransmitted to each of the output units 1313 and 1323 to rotate each ofthe output units 1313 and 1323.

This is also applied to the rotation input of the actuation operator113. Thus, the rotation input of the actuation operator 113 does notcause the yaw operator 112 to rotate and is transmitted to each of theoutput units 1313 and 1323 to rotate each of the output units 1313 and1323.

In summary, according to this configuration, the rotation input of oneoperator does not cause another operator to rotate and is transmitted toeach output unit to rotate each output unit.

By this operational principle, even when the yaw operator 112 and theactuation operator 113 rotate simultaneously, the sum of (or thedifference between) the rotation inputs of the yaw operator 112 and theactuation operator 113 is transmitted to the output units 1313 and 1323of the first and second differential pulleys 131 and 132 through thefirst and second differential pulleys 131 and 132 to rotate the outputunits 1313 and 1323, and the rotations of the output units 1313 and 1323are transmitted to the first and second jaws 121 and 122 of the end tool120 through the operation control member 115, thus causing the first andsecond jaws 121 and 122 to rotate according to the operations of the yawoperator 112 and the actuation operator 113.

(End Tool)

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of the end tool 120 of the surgicalinstrument 100 of FIG. 2.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, and 5, the end tool 120 of the surgicalinstrument 100 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention includes the end tool control member 123. The end tool controlmember 123 includes a J11 pulley 123J11, a J12 pulley 123J12, a J13pulley 123J13, a J14 pulley 123J14, and a J15 pulley 123J15 that arerelated to the rotation motion of the first jaw 121, and a J21 pulley123J21, a J22 pulley 123J22, a J23 pulley 123J23, a J24 pulley 123J24,and a J25 pulley 123J25 that are related to the rotation motion of thesecond jaw 122. Herein, the J12 pulley 123J12, the J14 pulley 123J14,the J22 pulley 123J22, and the J24 pulley 123J24 may be formed to rotatearound an end tool pitch operating axis 1231. Although it is illustratedthat pulleys facing each other are formed to be parallel to each otherand to have the same size, the present invention is not limited thereto.For example, the pulleys may be formed to have various positions andsizes suitable for the configuration of the end tool 120.

Herein, the end tool 120 of the surgical instrument 100 according to thefirst embodiment of the present invention includes the end tool controlmember 123 and only two wires, namely, a first jaw operating wire 135J13and a second jaw operating wire 135J23, thereby making it possible toconveniently perform a pitch operation, a yaw operation, and anactuation operation of the end tool 120. This will be described below inmore detail.

The J11 pulley 123J11 and the J21 pulley 123J21 are formed to face eachother and rotate independently around the Z-axis direction. Although notillustrated in FIG. 5, the first jaw 121 may be coupled to the J11pulley 123J11 to rotate along with the J11 pulley 123J11, and the secondjaw 122 may be coupled to the J21 pulley 123J21 to rotate along with theJ21 pulley 123J21. A yaw operation and an actuation operation of the endtool 120 are performed according to the rotations of the J11 pulley123J11 and the J21 pulley 123J21. That is, the yaw operation isperformed when the J11 pulley 123J11 and the J21 pulley 123J21 rotate inthe same direction, and the actuation operation is performed when theJ11 pulley 123J11 and the J21 pulley 123J21 rotate in oppositedirections.

The elements related to the rotation of the J11 pulley 123J11 will bedescribed below.

On one side of the J11 pulley 123J11, the J12 pulley 123J12 and the J14pulley 123J14 are disposed to be spaced apart from each other by apredetermined distance and face each other. Herein, the J12 pulley123J12 and the J14 pulley 123J14 are formed to rotate independentlyaround the Y-axis direction. Also, on one side of the J12 pulley 123J12and the J14 pulley 123J14, the J13 pulley 123J13 and the J15 pulley123J15 are disposed to be spaced apart from each other by apredetermined distance and face each other. Herein, the J13 pulley123J13 and the J15 pulley 123J15 are formed to rotate independentlyaround the Y-axis direction. Although it is illustrated that all of theJ12 pulley 123J12, the J13 pulley 123J13, the J14 pulley 123J14, and theJ15 pulley 123J15 are formed to rotate around the Y-axis direction, thepresent invention is not limited thereto, and the rotating axes of therespective pulleys may be formed in various directions according totheir configurations.

At least a portion of the first jaw operating wire 135J13 contacts theJ13 pulley 123J13, the J12 pulley 123J12, the J11 pulley 123J11, the J14pulley 123J14, and the J15 pulley 123J15, so that the first jawoperating wire 135J13 may move along the pulleys while rotating thepulleys.

Thus, when the first jaw operating wire 135J13 is pulled in thedirection of an arrow J1R of FIG. 5, the first jaw operating wire 135J13sequentially rotates the J15 pulley 123J15, the J14 pulley 123J14, theJ11 pulley 123J11, the J12 pulley 123J12, and the J13 pulley 123J13. Inthis case, the J11 pulley 123J11 rotates in the direction of an arrow Rof FIG. 5 to rotate the first jaw 121 together.

On the other hand, when the first jaw operating wire 135J13 is pulled inthe direction of an arrow J1L of FIG. 5, the first jaw operating wire135J13 sequentially rotates the J13 pulley 123J13, the J12 pulley123J12, the J11 pulley 123J11, the J14 pulley 123J14, and the J15 pulley123J15. In this case, the J11 pulley 123J11 rotates in the direction ofan arrow L of FIG. 5 to rotate the first jaw 121 together therewith.

The elements related to the rotation of the J21 pulley 123J21 will bedescribed below.

On one side of the J21 pulley 123J21, the J22 pulley 123J22 and the J24pulley 123J24 are disposed to be spaced apart from each other by apredetermined distance and face each other. Herein, the J22 pulley123J22 and the J24 pulley 123J24 are formed to rotate independentlyaround the Y-axis direction. Also, on one side of the J22 pulley 123J22and the J24 pulley 123J24, the J23 pulley 123J23 and the J25 pulley123J25 are disposed to be spaced apart from each other by apredetermined distance and face each other. Herein, the J23 pulley123J23 and the J25 pulley 123J25 are formed to rotate independentlyaround the Y-axis direction. Although it is illustrated that all of theJ22 pulley 123J22, the J23 pulley 123J23, the J24 pulley 123J24, and theJ25 pulley 123J25 are formed to rotate around the Y-axis direction, thepresent invention is not limited thereto, and the rotating axes of therespective pulleys may be formed in various directions according totheir configurations.

At least a portion of the second jaw operating wire 135J23 contacts theJ23 pulley 123J23, the J22 pulley 123J22, the J21 pulley 123J21, the J24pulley 123J24, and the J25 pulley 123J25, so that the second jawoperating wire 135J23 may move along the pulleys while rotating thepulleys.

Thus, when the second jaw operating wire 135J23 is pulled in thedirection of an arrow J2R of FIG. 5, the second jaw operating wire135J23 sequentially rotates the J25 pulley 123J25, the J24 pulley123J24, the J21 pulley 123J21, the J22 pulley 123J22, and the J23 pulley123J23. In this case, the J21 pulley 123J21 rotates in the direction ofthe arrow R of FIG. 5 to rotate the second jaw 122 together therewith.

On the other hand, when the second jaw operating wire 135J23 is pulledin the direction of an arrow J2L of FIG. 5, the second jaw operatingwire 135J23 sequentially rotates the J23 pulley 123J23, the J22 pulley123J22, the J21 pulley 123J21, the J24 pulley 123J24, and the J25 pulley123J25. In this case, the J21 pulley 123J21 rotates in the direction ofthe arrow L of FIG. 5 to rotate the second jaw 122 together therewith.

When one end portion of the first jaw operating wire 135J13 is pulled inthe direction of the arrow J1R of FIG. 5 and the other end portion ofthe first jaw operating wire 135J13 is pulled in the direction of thearrow J1L of FIG. 5, the end tool control member 123 rotates around theend tool pitch operating axis 1231 in the counterclockwise direction, sothat the end tool 120 rotates downward to perform a pitch motion.

On the other hand, when one end portion of the second jaw operating wire135J23 is pulled in the direction of the arrow J2R of FIG. 5 and theother end portion of the second jaw operating wire 135J23 is pulled inthe direction of the arrow J2L of FIG. 5, the end tool control member123 rotates around the end tool pitch operating axis 1231 in theclockwise direction, so that the end tool 120 rotates upward to performa pitch motion.

That is, since the end tool 120 includes the end tool control member 123and only two wires, namely, the first jaw operating wire 135J13 and thesecond jaw operating wire 135J23, a pitch operation, a yaw operation,and an actuation operation of the end tool 120 may be convenientlyperformed. This will be described later in detail.

In the end tool control member 123 of the end tool 120 according to anembodiment of the present invention, the end tool pitch operating axis1231 is disposed adjacent to the first and second jaws 121 and 122 (thatis, the end tool pitch operating axis 1231 is disposed adjacent to theJ12 pulley 123J12 and the J14 pulley 123J14, not to the J13 pulley123J13 and the J15 pulley 123J15), thereby reducing a pitch rotationradius of the first and second jaws 121 and 122. Accordingly, a spacenecessary for a pitch operation of the first and second jaws 121 and 122may be reduced.

FIG. 5A illustrates a modification of the end tool 120 of FIG. 5.

Referring to FIG. 5A, an end tool 120′ includes an end tool controlmember 123′, and the end tool control member 123′ includes a J11 pulley123J11, a J12 pulley 123J12, a J14 pulley 123J14 related to the rotationmotion of a first jaw, and a J21 pulley 123J21, a J22 pulley 123J22, aJ24 pulley 123J24 related to the rotation motion of a second jaw.Herein, the J12 pulley 123J12, the J14 pulley 123J14, the J22 pulley123J22, and the J24 pulley 123J24 may be formed to rotate around an endtool pitch operating axis 1231. Although it is illustrated that pulleysfacing each other are formed to be parallel to each other and have thesame size, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the pulleysmay be formed to have various positions and sizes suitable for theconfiguration of the end tool 120.

In this modification, not two pairs of pulleys facing each other, butonly a pair of pulleys (i.e., the J12 pulley 123J12 and the J14 pulley123J14) are disposed on one side of the J11 pulley 123J11 coupled withthe first jaw, wherein the first jaw operating wire 135J13 is wound oneor more times around the pair of pulleys while contacting the pair ofpulleys.

In detail, the J11 pulley 123J11 and the J21 pulley 123J21 are formed toface each other and rotate independently around the Z-axis direction.

On one side of the J11 pulley 123J11, the J12 pulley 123J12 and the J14pulley 123J14 are disposed to be spaced apart from each other by apredetermined distance and face each other. Herein, the J12 pulley123J12 and the J14 pulley 123J14 are formed to rotate independentlyaround the Y-axis direction. At least a portion of the first jawoperating wire 135J13 contacts the J12 pulley 123J12, the J11 pulley123J11, and the J14 pulley 123J14, so that the first jaw operating wire135J13 may move along the pulleys while rotating the pulleys. Herein,the first jaw operating wire 135J13 may be wound one or more timesaround the J12 pulley 123J12 and then wound one or more times around theJ14 pulley 123J14 through the J11 pulley 123J11.

Likewise, on one side of the J21 pulley 123J21, the J22 pulley 123J22and the J24 pulley 123J24 are disposed to be spaced apart from eachother by a predetermined distance and face each other. Herein, the J22pulley 123J22 and the J24 pulley 123J24 are formed to rotateindependently around the Y-axis direction. At least a portion of thesecond jaw operating wire 135J23 contacts the J22 pulley 123J22, the J21pulley 123J21, and the J24 pulley 123J24, so that the second jawoperating wire 135J23 may move along the pulleys while rotating thepulleys. Herein, the second jaw operating wire 135J23 may be wound oneor more times around the J22 pulley 123J22 and then wound one or moretimes around the J24 pulley 123J24 through the J21 pulley 123J21.

By the above configuration, the number of pulleys may be reduced, andthus the size of a surgical instrument may be further reduced.

(Pitch Operation Control and Wire Mirroring)

FIG. 6 is a schematic view illustrating a pitch operation of thesurgical instrument 100 of FIG. 2.

As described above, the operator 110 of the surgical instrument 100according to the first embodiment of the present invention furtherincludes the operator control member 115 engaged with the pitchoperating axis 1111 of the pitch operator 111. The operator controlmember 115 has substantially the same configuration of the end toolcontrol member 123, and the end tool control member 123 and the operatorcontrol member 115 are disposed symmetrical to each other about the YZplane of FIG. 1. In other words, it may be said that the end toolcontrol member 123 and the operator control member 115 are mirrored withrespect to the YZ plane of FIG. 1.

In detail, the operator control member 115 includes a J11 pulley 115J11,a J12 pulley 115J12, a J13 pulley 115J13, a J14 pulley 115J14, and a J15pulley 115J15 that are related to the rotation motion of the first jaw121, and a J21 pulley 115J21, a J22 pulley 115J22, a J23 pulley 115J23,a J24 pulley 115J24, and a J25 pulley 115J25 that are related to therotation motion of the second jaw 122.

At least a portion of the first jaw operating wire 135J13 contacts theJ13 pulley 115J13, the J12 pulley 115J12, the J11 pulley 115J11, the J14pulley 115J14, and the J15 pulley 115J15, so that the first jawoperating wire 135J13 may move along the pulleys while rotating thepulleys.

At least a portion of the second jaw operating wire 135J23 contacts theJ23 pulley 115J23, the J22 pulley 115J22, the J21 pulley 115J21, the J24pulley 115J24, and the J25 pulley 115J25, so that the second jawoperating wire 135J23 may move along the pulleys while rotating thepulleys.

Herein, the rotating axis of the J12 pulley 115J12, the J14 pulley115J14, the J22 pulley 115J22, and the J24 pulley 115J24 may beidentical to the pitch operating axis 1111 of the pitch operator 111.Also, a bar extending from the rotating axis of the J11 pulley 115J11and the J21 pulley 115J21 may be identical to the pitch operating bar1112 of the pitch operator 111.

The pitch operation in the first embodiment of the present invention isperformed as follows:

When the user grips the pitch operating bar 1112 of the pitch operator111 of the operator 110 and rotates the pitch operating bar 1112 aroundthe pitch operating axis 1111 in the direction of an arrow OP (OperatorPitch) of FIG. 6, the first jaw operating wire 135J13 is pulled towardthe operator 110 and moves in the direction of an arrow PJ1 of FIG. 6.At the same time, the second jaw operating wire 135J23 is unwound fromthe operator 110, moves toward the end tool 120, and moves in thedirection of an arrow PJ2 of FIG. 6. Then, as the first jaw operatingwire 135J13 is pulled toward the operator 110, the J12 pulley 123J12 andthe J14 pulley 123J14 rotate around the rotating axis (see FIG. 5) inthe counterclockwise direction. At the same time, as the second jawoperating wire 135J23 is pulled toward the end tool 120, the J22 pulley123J22 and the J24 pulley 123J24 rotate around the rotating axis (seeFIG. 5) in the counterclockwise direction. Consequently, the end tool120 rotates downward to perform a pitch motion.

In this manner, since the end tool control member 123 and the operatorcontrol member 115 are disposed symmetrical to each other (i.e.,mirrored) about the YZ plane of FIG. 1, the pitch operation may beconveniently performed. That is, the pitch operation may be performedregardless of the yaw operation and the actuation operation. Herein, theyaw operation refers to a rotating operation of the first and secondjaws 121 and 122 according to the rotations of the J11 pulley 123J11 andthe J21 pulley 123J21 of the end tool control member 123 and the J11pulley 115J11 and the J21 pulley 115J21 of the operator control member115.

Overall Operation of First Embodiment

Hereinafter, an overall configuration for the pitch operation, the yawoperation, and the actuation operation of the surgical instrument 100according to the first embodiment of the present invention will besummarized with reference to the above descriptions.

For the configuration of the end tool 120 of the present embodiment, theoperating force transmitter 130 capable of dividing the operation inputof the operator 110 into a pitch operation, a yaw operation, and anactuation operation is necessary to perform the pitch, yaw, andactuation operations of the end tool 120. As described above, throughthe structure in which the end tool control member 123 and the operatorcontrol member 115 are disposed symmetrical to each other, the rotationoperation of the pitch operator 111 enables the pitch operation of theend tool 120 regardless of the operations of the yaw operator 112 andthe actuation operator 113. However, in order for the operations of theyaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 to lead to the yawoperation and the actuation operation of the end tool 120, theoperations of the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 haveto be converted into the operations of two jaws of the end tool 120. Therotation of the yaw operator 112 causes the two jaws to rotate in thesame direction, and the rotation of the actuation operator 113 causesthe two jaws to rotate in different directions. That is, the first jaw121 rotates as much as the sum of the operation inputs of the yawoperator 112 and the actuation operator 113, and the second jaw 122rotates as much as the difference between the operation inputs of theyaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113. This may be expressedas the following equation:J1=Y+A(the first jaw rotates in the same direction in both the yawoperation and the actuation operation.)J2=Y−A(the second jaw rotates in the same direction in the yaw operationand rotates in an opposite direction in the actuation operation.)

(where Y denotes the rotation of the yaw operating pulley, and A denotesthe rotation of the actuation operating pulley.)

To this end, the operating force transmitter includes a differentialpulley that receives Y and A and outputs the sum (J1) of Y and A, and adifferential pulley that receives Y and A and outputs the difference(J2) between Y and A, and the rotation of the output unit of eachdifferential pulley is transmitted to each jaw of the end tool.

This will be described below in more detail.

First, the pitch operation will be described below.

As described above, when the user grips the pitch operating bar 1112 ofthe pitch operator 111 of the operator 110 and rotates the pitchoperating bar 1112 around the pitch operating axis 1111 in the directionof the arrow OP of FIG. 6, the operator control member 115 also rotatesaround the pitch operating axis 1111. Then, the first jaw operating wire135J13 wound around the operation control member 115 is pulled towardthe operator 110 and moves in the direction of the arrow PJ1 of FIG. 6.At the same time, the second jaw operating wire 135J23 wound around theoperation control member 115 is unwound from the operator control member115 and moves in the direction of the arrow PJ2 of FIG. 6. Then, the endtool control member 123 connected with the first jaw operating wire135J13 and the second jaw operating wire 135J23 rotates around the endtool pitch operating axis 1231 in the direction of an arrow EP of FIG. 6to perform a pitch motion.

The yaw operation will be described below.

When the yaw operator 112 rotates in the direction of the arrow Y ofFIG. 2, the first pulley 1121 a of the yaw operator 112, the YC1 wire135YC1 wound around the first pulley 1121 a, and the first input unit1311 of the first differential pulley 131, around which the YC1 wire135YC1 is wound, rotate together. In this manner, when the first inputunit 1311 of the first differential pulley 131 rotates, the rotatingforce of the differential control wire 135J11 connecting the first inputunit 1311 and the output unit 1313 rotates the output unit 1313 in thedirection of the arrow R1 of FIG. 4A. Then, the rotation of the outputunit 1313 is transmitted to the operator control member 115 through theJ12 wire 135J12 wound around the output unit 1313, to rotate the J11pulley 115J11 (see FIG. 6) of the operator control member 115. Then,when the J11 pulley 115J11 of the operator control member 115 rotates,the first jaw operating wire 135J13 connected therewith is moved, andthe first jaw 121 of the end tool 120 connected with the first jawoperating wire 135J13 rotates in the direction of the arrow YJ of FIG.2.

Also, when the yaw operator 112 rotates in the direction of the arrow Yof FIG. 2, the second pulley 1121 b of the yaw operator 112, the YC2wire 135YC2 wound around the second pulley 1121 b, and the first inputunit 1321 of the second differential pulley 132, around which the YC2wire 135YC2 is wound, rotate together therewith. In this manner, whenthe first input unit 1321 of the second differential pulley 132 rotates,the rotating force of the differential control wire 135J21 connectingthe first input unit 1321 and the output unit 1323 rotates the outputunit 1323 in the direction of the arrow R3 of FIG. 4B. Then, therotation of the output unit 1323 is transmitted to the operator controlmember 115 through the J22 wire 135J22 wound around the output unit1323, to rotate the J21 pulley 115J21 (see FIG. 6) of the operatorcontrol member 115. Then, when the J21 pulley 115J21 of the operatorcontrol member 115 rotates, the second jaw operating wire 135J23connected therewith is moved, and the second jaw 122 of the end tool 120connected with the second jaw operating wire 135J23 rotates in thedirection of the arrow YJ of FIG. 2.

In this manner, when the yaw operator 112 is rotated in one direction,the first and second jaws 121 and 122 rotate in the same direction toperform a yaw operation. Herein, the surgical instrument 100 accordingto an embodiment of the present invention includes one or moredifferential pulleys, so that the operation of the yaw operator 112 isnot accompanied by the operation of the actuation operator 113.

The actuation operation will be described below.

When the actuation operator 113 rotates in the direction of the arrow Aof FIG. 2, the first pulley 1131 a of the actuation operator 113, theAC1 wire 135AC1 wound around the first pulley 1131 a, and the secondinput unit 1312 of the first differential pulley 131, around which theAC1 wire 135AC1 is wound, rotate together. Herein, since the AC1 wire135AC1 is twisted one time, the rotating force of the actuation operator113 is reversed and transmitted to the first differential pulley 131. Inthis manner, when the second input unit 1312 of the first differentialpulley 131 rotates, the rotating force of the differential control wire135J11 connecting the second input unit 1312 and the output unit 1313rotates the output unit 1313 in a direction opposite to the direction ofthe arrow R2 of FIG. 4A. Then, the rotation of the output unit 1313 istransmitted to the operator control member 115 through the J12 wire135J12 wound around the output unit 1313, to rotate the J11 pulley115J11 (see FIG. 6) of the operator control member 115. Then, when theJ11 pulley 115J11 of the operator control member 115 rotates, the firstjaw operating wire 135J13 connected therewith is rotated, and the firstjaw 121 of the end tool 120 that is connected with the first jawoperating wire 135J13 rotates in the direction of the arrow YJ of FIG.2.

Also, when the actuation operator 113 rotates in the direction of thearrow A of FIG. 2, the second pulley 1131 b of the actuation operator113, the AC2 wire 135AC2 wound around the second pulley 1131 b, and thesecond input unit 1322 of the second differential pulley 132, aroundwhich the AC2 wire 135AC2 is wound, rotate together. In this manner,when the second input unit 1322 of the second differential pulley 132rotates, the rotating force of the differential control wire 135J21connecting the second input unit 1322 and the output unit 1323 rotatesthe output unit 1323 in the direction of the arrow R4 of FIG. 4A. Then,the rotation of the output unit 1323 is transmitted to the operatorcontrol member 115 through the J22 wire 135J22 wound around the outputunit 1323, to rotate the J21 pulley 115J21 (see FIG. 6) of the operatorcontrol member 115. Then, when the J21 pulley 115J21 of the operatorcontrol member 115 rotates, the second jaw operating wire 135J23connected therewith is rotated, and the second jaw 122 of the end tool120 that is connected with the second jaw operating wire 135J23 rotatesin a direction opposite to the direction of the arrow YJ of FIG. 2.

In this manner, when the actuation operator 113 is rotated in onedirection, the first and second jaws 121 and 122 rotate in oppositedirections to perform an actuation operation. Herein, the surgicalinstrument 100 according to an embodiment of the present inventionincludes one or more differential pulleys, so that the operation of theactuation operator 113 is not accompanied by the operation of the yawoperator 112.

Thus, according to the present invention, a surgical instrumentperforming an output operation of an end tool by the independent inputsof a pitch operator, a yaw operator, and an actuation operator may beimplemented solely by a mechanical configuration without using motors,electronic control, or software. That is, since the pitch operation, theyaw operation, and the actuation operation, which affect each other, areseparated from each other solely by a mechanism, the configuration ofthe surgical instrument may be significantly simplified.

Also, the rotating force of the operator 110 may be transmitted to theend tool 120 solely by a minimum wire and pulley structure. Inparticular, according to the present invention, since the operationdirection of the operator 110 is intuitively identical to the operationdirection of the end tool 120, the convenience of a surgical operatormay be improved and the accuracy of a surgical operation may beimproved. In addition, since the end tool 120 includes only two wires,namely, the first jaw operating wire 135J13 and the second jaw operatingwire 135J23, the pitch operation, the yaw operation, and the actuationoperation of the end tool 120 may be conveniently performed.Furthermore, since the end tool control member 123 and the operatorcontrol member 115 are disposed symmetrical to each other (i.e.,mirrored) about the YZ plane of FIG. 1, the pitch operation may beconveniently performed. That is, the pitch operation may be performedregardless of the yaw operation and the actuation operation.

Modification of End Tool and Operator Control Member of First Embodiment

FIG. 7 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 100 b according to amodification of the end tool 120 and the operator control member 115 ofthe first embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, and FIG. 8 is a detailedview of the end tool 120 of the surgical instrument 100 b of FIG. 7.Since the surgical instrument 100 b according to a modification of theend tool 120 of the first embodiment of the present invention is similarto the surgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention and is different from the surgical instrument 100 interms of the configuration of the end tool 120, the configuration of theend tool 120 will be mainly described below.

Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, the surgical instrument 100 b according to amodification of the end tool 120 of the first embodiment of the presentinvention includes an operator 110, an end tool 120, an operating forcetransmitter 130, and a connector (not illustrated).

The end tool 120 includes an end tool control member 123, and the endtool control member 123 includes a J11 pulley 123J11, a J12 pulley123J12, a J13 pulley 123J13, a J14 pulley 123J14, and a J15 pulley123J15 that are related to the rotation motion of the first jaw 121, anda J21 pulley 123J21, a J22 pulley 123J22, a J23 pulley 123J23, a J24pulley 123J24, and a J25 pulley 123J25 that are related to the rotationmotion of the second jaw 122. Herein, the first jaw 121, the J11 pulley123J11, the J12 pulley 123J12, the J14 pulley 123J14, the second jaw122, the J21 pulley 123J21, the J22 pulley 123J22, and the J24 pulley123J24 may be formed to rotate around the end tool pitch operating axis1231.

The surgical instrument 100 b is different from the surgical instrument100 of the first embodiment in that the end tool 120 further includes apitch pulley 123P, the operator 110 further includes a pitch pulley115P, and the operating force transmitter 130 further includes a pitchwire 135P. In detail, the pitch pulley 123P of the end tool 120 may beintegrated with the end tool pitch operating axis 1231 to rotate alongwith the end tool pitch operating axis 1231. The pitch pulley 115P ofthe operator 110 may be integrated with the pitch operating axis 1111 torotate along with the pitch operating axis 1111. Also, the pitch wire135P may connect the pitch pulley 123P of the end tool 120 and the pitchpulley 115P of the operator 110.

Thus, when the user grips the pitch operating bar 1112 of the pitchoperator 111 and rotates the pitch operating bar 1112 around the pitchoperating axis 1111, the pitch operating axis 1111 connected with thepitch operating bar 1112 and the pitch pulley 115P connected therewithrotate, the rotation of the pitch pulley 115P is transmitted to thepitch pulley 123P of the end tool 120 through the pitch wire 135P, andthe pitch pulley 123P also rotates together therewith. Consequently, theend tool 120 rotates to perform a pitch motion.

In the surgical instrument 100 of the first embodiment, since the pitchoperation of the surgical instrument 100 is performed solely by thefirst jaw operating wire 135J13 and the second jaw operating wire135J23, when the first jaw operating wire 135J13 and the second jawoperating wire 135J23 are extended due to long-term use, the pitchoperation may not be performed properly. In addition, the operatingforce of the pitch operator 111 may not be properly transmitted to theend tool 120. In order to solve such problems, the surgical instrument100 b according to a modification of the end tool 120 of the firstembodiment of the present invention further includes the pitch pulley123P of the end tool 120, the pitch pulley 115P of the operator 110, andthe pitch wire 135P of the operating force transmitter 130 to moreperfectly transmit the operating force of the pitch operation of thepitch operator 111 to the end tool 120, thereby improving operationalreliability.

The end tool 120 of the surgical instrument 100 b may further include awire guide 123WG. In detail, the wire guide 123WG may be formed toprotrude in the Z-axis direction in the end tool control member 123. Thewire guide 123WG may be formed to contact the first jaw operating wire135J13 and guide a rotating path of the first jaw operating wire 135J13,thereby making it possible to prevent the first jaw operating wire135J13 from being removed from the J12 pulley 115J12 and the J14 pulley115J14.

In this manner, in order to increase the reliability of the pitchoperation, the first embodiment may be modified such that pulleys areadded in the end tool and operator and wires are added, and may bemodified such that a wire guide is also added in the end tool.

Also, the above modification of the end tool of the first embodiment ofthe present invention may also be applied to various other modificationsand embodiments that will be described later.

Although FIG. 7 illustrates that the pitch operation is performed by thewires and pulleys, the present invention is not limited thereto. Thatis, various structures, in which the end tool control member 123 and theoperator control member 115 may be connected symmetrically, may beapplied to the present invention. For example, a four-bar link may beused to connect the end tool control member 123 and the operator controlmember 115. That is, when a long side of the four-bar link functions asthe jaw operating wires 135J13 and 135J23 and the end tool controlmember 123 and the operator control member 115 are connected to acentral portion of a short side of the four-bar link, the end toolcontrol member 123 and the operator control member 115 may be disposedsymmetrical to each other (i.e., mirrored) about the YZ plane of FIG. 1.

Modification of Operator of First Embodiment

FIG. 9 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 100 a according to amodification of the operator 110 of the first embodiment illustrated inFIG. 1. Since the surgical instrument 100 a according to a modificationof the operator 110 of the first embodiment of the present invention issimilar to the surgical instrument 100 according to the first embodimentof the present invention and is different from the surgical instrument100 in terms of the position of the operator 110, the configuration ofthe operator 110 will be mainly described below.

Referring to FIG. 9, the surgical instrument 100 a according to amodification of the operator 110 of the first embodiment of the presentinvention includes an operator 110, an end tool 120, an operating forcetransmitter 130, and a connector (not illustrated).

In the surgical instrument 100 a, the pitch operator 111 and the endtool 120 are not formed on the same axis (X axis), but are formed ondifferent axes. That is, additional direction-changing pulleys P arefurther provided between the first jaw operating wire 135J13 and thesecond jaw operating wire 135J23, and the first jaw operating wire135J13 and the second jaw operating wire 135J23 are bent one time.Accordingly, the pitch operator 111 and the end tool 120 are not formedon the same axis (X axis), and the pitch operator 111 may be formedadjacent to the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113.

In the surgical instrument 100 a, the pitch operator 111 may be formedadjacent to the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113. In thismanner, the relative positions of the pitch operator 111, the yawoperator 112, and the actuation operator 113 may be modified within thescope of improving user convenience.

Also, by forming the connector to be nonlinear, the relative positionsof the end tool, the pitch operator, the yaw operator, and the actuationoperator may be modified variously.

Also, the above modification of the operator of the first embodiment ofthe present invention may also be applied to various other modificationsand embodiments.

Modification of Operator Control Member of First Embodiment

FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 100 c according toa modification of the operator control member 115 of the firstembodiment illustrated in FIG. 1. Since the surgical instrument 100 caccording to a modification of the operator control member 115 of thefirst embodiment of the present invention is similar to the surgicalinstrument 100 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention and is different from the surgical instrument 100 in terms ofthe configuration of the operator control member, the configuration ofthe operator control member will be mainly described below.

Referring to FIG. 10, the surgical instrument 100 c according to amodification of the operator control member 115 of the first embodimentof the present invention includes an operator 110, an end tool 120, anoperating force transmitter 130, and a connector (not illustrated).Also, the operator 110 includes an operator control member 115 c, andthe operator control member 115 c does not include the relay pulley 115a (see FIG. 2), unlike in the surgical instrument 100 of the firstembodiment of the present invention illustrated in FIG. 2. Since a relaypulley is removed from the operator control member 115 c, theconfiguration of the operator control member 115 c may be simplified.

In this manner, a relay pulley may be removed from the operator 110.

Also, the above modification of the operator control member 115 of thefirst embodiment of the present invention may also be applied to variousother modifications and embodiments.

Modification of End Tool Control Member and Operator Control Member ofFirst Embodiment

FIG. 11 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 100 d according toa modification of the end tool control member 123 and the operatorcontrol member 115 of the first embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1. Sincethe surgical instrument 100 d according to a modification of the endtool control member 123 and the operator control member 115 of the firstembodiment of the present invention is similar to the surgicalinstrument 100 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention and is different from the surgical instrument 100 in terms ofthe configuration of the end tool control member and the operatorcontrol member, the configurations of the end tool control member andthe operator control member will be mainly described below.

Referring to FIG. 11, the surgical instrument 100 d according to amodification of the end tool control member 123 and the operator controlmember 115 of the first embodiment of the present invention includes anoperator 110, an end tool 120, an operating force transmitter 130, and aconnector (not illustrated). Herein, the operator 110 includes anoperator control member 115 d, and the end tool 120 includes an end toolcontrol member 123 d.

This will be described below in more detail.

In the surgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 5, the end tool pitchoperating axis 1231 is formed adjacent to the first jaw 121 and thesecond jaw 122. That is, the end tool pitch operating axis 1231functions as the rotating axis of the J12 pulley 123J12, the J14 pulley123J14, the J22 pulley 123J22, and the J24 pulley 123J24, and the firstjaw 121 and the second jaw 122 rotate around the end tool pitchoperating axis 1231.

However, as illustrated in FIG. 11, in the surgical instrument 100 daccording to a modification of the end tool control member 123 of thefirst embodiment of the present invention, an end tool pitch operatingaxis 1231 d is formed distant from the first jaw 121 and the second jaw122. That is, the end tool pitch operating axis 1231 d functions as therotating axis of the J13 pulley 123J13, the J15 pulley 123J15, the J23pulley 123J23, and the J25 pulley 123J25, so that the J11 pulley 123J11,the J12 pulley 123J12, the J13 pulley 123J13, the J14 pulley 123J14, andthe J15 pulley 123J15 related to the rotation motion of the first jaw121 and the J21 pulley 123J21, the J22 pulley 123J22, the J23 pulley123J23, the J24 pulley 123J24, and the J25 pulley 123J25 related to therotation motion of the second jaw 122 rotate around the end tool pitchoperating axis 1231 d. In this manner, by moving the position of the endtool pitch operating axis 1231 d, the rotation radius of the end tool120 and rotating elements may be modified. Likewise, the operating axisof the operator control member 115 d may also be formed distant from therelay pulley 115 a (see FIG. 2).

Also, the above modification of the end tool control member 123 and theoperator control member 115 of the first embodiment of the presentinvention may also be applied to various other modifications andembodiments.

Modification of End Tool Control Member and Operator Control Member ofFirst Embodiment

FIG. 12 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 100 e according toa modification of the end tool control member 123 and the operatorcontrol member 115 of the first embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1. Sincethe surgical instrument 100 e according to a modification of the endtool control member 123 and the operator control member 115 of the firstembodiment of the present invention is similar to the surgicalinstrument 100 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention and is different from the surgical instrument 100 in terms ofthe configuration of the end tool control member 123 and the operatorcontrol member 115, the configurations of the end tool control memberand the operator control member will be mainly described below.

Referring to FIG. 12, the surgical instrument 100 e according to amodification of the end tool control member 123 and the operator controlmember 115 of the first embodiment of the present invention includes anoperator 110, an end tool 120, an operating force transmitter 130, and aconnector (not illustrated). Herein, the operator 110 includes anoperator control member 115 e, and the end tool 120 includes an end toolcontrol member 123 e.

As illustrated in FIG. 12, the surgical instrument 100 e according to amodification of the end tool control member 123 of the first embodimentof the present invention is an example of the combination of thestructure of FIG. 10 in which a relay pulley is not provided and thestructure of FIG. 11 in which an axis is disposed therebehind, andcorresponds to the structure in which the relay pulley 115 a (see FIG.2) is removed from the surgical instrument 100 d illustrated in FIG. 11.Since a relay pulley is removed from the operator control member 115 e,the configuration of the operator control member 115 e may besimplified.

Also, the above modification of the end tool control member 123 and theoperator control member 115 of the first embodiment of the presentinvention may also be applied to various other modifications andembodiments.

Another Modification of End Tool Control Member and Operator ControlMember of First Embodiment

FIG. 13 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 100 f according toanother modification of the end tool control member 123 and the operatorcontrol member 115 of the first embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, andFIG. 14 is a bottom perspective view of an end tool control member 123 fof FIG. 13. Since the surgical instrument 100 f according to amodification of the end tool control member 123 and the operator controlmember 115 of the first embodiment of the present invention is similarto the surgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention and is different from the surgical instrument 100 interms of the configuration of the end tool control member and theoperator control member, the configurations of the end tool controlmember and the operator control member will be mainly described below.That is, an end tool control member that is different in form from theend tool control member 123 illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 8 is used in thismodification.

Referring to FIGS. 13 and 14, the surgical instrument 100 f according toa modification of the end tool control member 123 and the operatorcontrol member 115 of the first embodiment of the present inventionincludes an operator 110, an end tool 120, an operating forcetransmitter 130, and a connector (not illustrated). Herein, the end tool120 includes the end tool control member 123 f. The end tool controlmember 123 f includes a J11 pulley 123J11, a J12 pulley 123J12, a J13pulley 123J13, a J14 pulley 123J14, and a J15 pulley 123J15 that arerelated to the rotation motion of the first jaw 121, and a J21 pulley123J21, a J22 pulley 123J22, a J23 pulley 123J23, a J24 pulley 123J24,and a J25 pulley 123J25 that are related to the rotation motion of thesecond jaw 122. Herein, the J13 pulley 123J13, the J15 pulley 123J15,the J23 pulley 123J23, and the J25 pulley 123J25 may be formed to rotatearound an end tool pitch operating axis 1231 f.

Herein, the surgical instrument 100 f of this modification is differentfrom the surgical instrument 100 illustrated in FIG. 5 or 8 in terms ofthe winding mode of arranged pulleys. That is, at least a portion of thefirst jaw operating wire 135J13 contacts the J13 pulley 123J13, the J12pulley 123J12, the J11 pulley 123J11, the J14 pulley 123J14, and the J15pulley 123J15, so that the first jaw operating wire 135J13 may movealong the pulleys while rotating the pulleys. In this case, in thesurgical instrument 100 illustrated in FIG. 5, the first jaw operatingwire 135J13 entering at the upper portion of the J13 pulley 123J13 exitsthrough the upper portion of the J15 pulley 123J15. However, in thesurgical instrument 100 f of this modification, the first jaw operatingwire 135J13 entering at the upper portion of the J13 pulley 123J13 exitsthrough the lower portion of the J15 pulley 123J15.

Likewise, at least a portion of the second jaw operating wire 135J23contacts the J23 pulley 123J23, the J22 pulley 123J22, the J21 pulley123J21, the J24 pulley 123J24, and the J25 pulley 123J25, so that thesecond jaw operating wire 135J23 may move along the pulleys whilerotating the pulleys. In the surgical instrument 100 f of thismodification, the second jaw operating wire 135J23 entering at the upperportion of the J23 pulley 123J23 exits through the lower portion of theJ25 pulley 123J25.

To this end, the arrangement of pulleys may also be modified. That is,the rotating axis (X1) of the J12 pulley 123J12 and the J22 pulley123J22 and the rotating axis (X2) of the J14 pulley 123J14 and the J24pulley 123J24 may not be located on the same line so that the first jawoperating wire 135J13 entering at the upper portion of the J13 pulley123J13 exits through the lower portion of the J15 pulley 123J15, asillustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14. That is, the rotating axis (X1) of theJ12 pulley 123J12 and the J22 pulley 123J22 may be formed over the endtool pitch operating axis 1231 f, while the rotating axis (X2) of theJ14 pulley 123J14 and the J24 pulley 123J24 may be formed under the endtool pitch operating axis 1231 f.

In addition, due to a difference in the wire winding mode, there may bea difference in the pitch operating mode. In the surgical instrument 100illustrated in FIG. 5, all of the pitch operation, the yaw operation,and the actuation operation may be performed by two wires, namely, thefirst jaw operating wire 134J13 and the second jaw operating wire134J23. However, in the surgical instrument 100 f of this modification,a wire for performing the pitch operation is additionally provided, inaddition to the first jaw operating wire 134J13 and the second jawoperating wire 134J23 for performing the yaw operation and the actuationoperation.

Also, the above modification of the end tool control member 123 and theoperator control member 115 of the first embodiment of the presentinvention may also be applied to various other modifications andembodiments.

<First Modification of Differential Pulley> (D1)

FIG. 15 is a view illustrating a first modification of the differentialpulley of the surgical instrument 100 illustrated in FIG. 2, and FIGS.16 and 17 are views illustrating an operation of the first modificationof a differential pulley illustrated in FIG. 15.

As described above, the differential pulley according to the presentinvention includes two or more input units and one output unit, receivesan input of rotating forces from the two or more input units, extracts adesired rotating force from the sum of (or the difference between) theinput rotating forces, and outputs the desired rotating force throughthe output unit.

Referring to FIG. 15, the first modification of the differential pulleyof the surgical instrument includes a first input unit 1361, a secondinput unit 1362, an output unit 1363, and a differential control member1364.

The first input unit 1361 includes a first pulley 1361P1, a secondpulley 1361P2, and a first input wire 1361W. The first pulley 1361P1 andthe second pulley 1361P2 are connected by the first input wire 1361W torotate together.

The second input unit 1362 includes a first pulley 1362P1, a secondpulley 1362P2, and a second input wire 1362W. The first pulley 1362P1and the second pulley 1362P2 are connected by the second input wire1362W to rotate together.

The output unit 1363 includes an output pulley 1363P and an output wire1363W. The output pulley 1363P and the differential control member 1364are connected by the output wire 1363W. When the differential controlmember 1364 translates, the output pulley 1363P connected with thedifferential control member 1364 by the output wire 1363W rotates.

The differential control member 1364 includes a first pulley 1364P1, asecond pulley 1364P2, and a differential control wire 1364W. Inaddition, the differential control member 1364 includes a firstdifferential joint 1364J1 and a second differential joint 1364J2. Thefirst pulley 1364P1 and the second pulley 1364P2 are connected by thedifferential control wire 1364W to rotate together. The differentialcontrol member 1364 may translate in the direction of an arrow T of FIG.15. For example, the differential control member 1364 may be installedon a guide rail (not illustrated), and may translate along the guiderail in the direction of the arrow T of FIG. 15.

The first differential joint 1364J1 may be coupled to the first inputwire 1361W and the differential control wire 1364W to transmit arotation of the first input wire 1361W to the differential control wire1364W. The second differential joint 1364J2 may be coupled to the secondinput wire 1362W and the differential control wire 1364W to transmit arotation of the second input wire 1362W to the differential control wire1364W.

An operation of the first modification of the differential pulley willbe described below.

First, a case where the first input unit 1361 rotates will be describedbelow.

Referring to FIGS. 15 and 16, when the first pulley 1361P1 of the firstinput unit 1361 rotates in the direction of an arrow A1 of FIG. 16, thefirst input wire 1361W connected therewith moves along the first pulley1361P1 in the direction of an arrow A2 of FIG. 16. Also, since the firstinput wire 1361W and the differential control wire 1364W are coupled tothe first differential joint 1364J1, when the first input wire 1361Wmoves in the direction of the arrow A2 of FIG. 16, the firstdifferential joint 1364J1 connected therewith also moves in thedirection of the arrow A2. In this case, when the second input unit 1362is fixed due to no rotation input, the second differential joint 1364J2is also fixed. Thus, the differential control member 1364 translates inthe direction of an arrow A3 as much as the movement of the firstdifferential joint 1364J1, the first pulley 1364P1, the second pulley1364P2, and the differential control wire 1364W also move together asmuch, and the first pulley 1364P1 and the second pulley 1364P2 rotate inthe counterclockwise direction. When the differential control member1364 moves in the direction of the arrow A3, the output wire 1363Wconnected therewith moves in the direction of an arrow A4 and thus theoutput pulley 1363P connected with the output wire 1363W rotates in thedirection of an arrow C.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the rotationof the first input unit 1361 does not affect the second input unit 1362and may be transmitted only to the output unit 1363 to rotate the outputpulley 1363P.

A case where the second input unit 1362 rotates will be described below.

Referring to FIGS. 15 and 17, when the first pulley 1362P1 of the secondinput unit 1362 rotates in the direction of an arrow B1 of FIG. 17, thesecond input wire 1362W connected therewith moves along the first pulley1362P1 in the direction of an arrow B2 of FIG. 17. Also, since thesecond input wire 1362W and the differential control wire 1364W arecoupled to the second differential joint 1364J2, when the second inputwire 1362W moves in the direction of the arrow B2 of FIG. 17, the seconddifferential joint 1364J2 connected therewith also moves in thedirection of the arrow B2. In this case, when the first input unit 1361is fixed due to no rotation input, the first differential joint 1364J1is also fixed. Thus, the differential control member 1364 translates inthe direction of an arrow B3 as much as the movement of the seconddifferential joint 1364J2, the first pulley 1364P1, the second pulley1364P2, and the differential control wire 1364W also move together asmuch, and the first pulley 1364P1 and the second pulley 1364P2 rotate inthe clockwise direction. When the differential control member 1364 movesin the direction of the arrow B3, the output wire 1363W connectedtherewith moves in the direction of an arrow B4 and thus the outputpulley 1363P connected with the output wire 1363W rotates in thedirection of the arrow C.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the rotationof the second input unit 1362 does not affect the first input unit 1361and may be transmitted only to the output unit 1363 to rotate the outputpulley 1363P.

A case where the first input unit 1361 and the second input unit 1362rotate together will be described below.

When the first pulley 1361P1 of the first input unit 1361 rotates in theclockwise direction, the output pulley 1363P of the output unit 1363rotates in the counterclockwise direction; and when the first pulley1362P1 of the second input unit 1362 rotates in the counterclockwisedirection, the output pulley 1363P of the output unit 1363 rotates inthe counterclockwise direction. Thus, when the first pulley 1361P1 ofthe first input unit 1361 and the second pulley 1362P1 of the secondinput unit 1362 rotate in opposite directions, the output pulley 1363Pof the output unit 1363 rotates as much as the sum of the two rotatingforces. On the other hand, when the first pulley 1361P1 of the firstinput unit 1361 and the second pulley 1362P1 of the second input unit1362 rotate in the same direction, the output pulley 1363P of the outputunit 1363 rotates as much as the difference between the two rotatingforces.

Thus, according to the present invention, when only one of the two ormore input units rotates, only the output unit may be rotated withoutother input units rotating. Also, when the two or more input unitsrotate together, a single rotating force equal to the sum of (or thedifference between) the rotating forces of the two input units may beoutput through the output unit.

The differential pulley of the first modification is a modification ofthe differential pulley illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B, and an exampleof applying the differential pulley of the first modification to thesurgical instrument will not be described herein.

<Second Modification of Differential Pulley> (D2)

FIG. 18 is a view illustrating a second modification of the differentialpulley of the surgical instrument 100 illustrated in FIG. 2, and FIGS.19 and 20 are views illustrating an operation of the second modificationof the differential pulley illustrated in FIG. 18.

As described above, the differential pulley according to the presentinvention includes two or more input units and one input unit, andoutputs rotating forces, which are input from the two or more inputunits, as a desired rotating force, while each of the two or more inputunits does not affect other input units.

Referring to FIG. 18, the second modification of the differential pulleyof the surgical instrument includes a first input unit 1371, a secondinput unit 1372, an output unit 1373, a first differential controlmember 1374, a second differential control member 1375, and adifferential control wire 1376.

The first input unit 1371 includes a first input pulley 1371P and afirst input wire 1371W. The first input pulley 1371P is connected withthe first input wire 1371W to rotate along with the first input wire1371W.

The second input unit 1372 includes a second input pulley 1372P and asecond input wire 1372W. The second input pulley 1372P is connected withthe second input wire 1372W to rotate along with the second input wire1372W.

The output unit 1373 includes an output pulley 1373P. The output pulley1373P is connected with the differential control wire 1376 to rotatealong with the differential control wire 1376.

The first differential control member 1374 includes a first pulley1374P1, a second pulley 1374P2, and a first differential control bar1374 a. The first pulley 1374P1 and the second pulley 1374P2 arerespectively formed at both end portions of the first differentialcontrol bar 1374 a, and may rotate independently. Also, both endportions of the first input wire 1371W are coupled to both end portionsof the first differential control member 1374. The first differentialcontrol member 1374 may translate in the direction of an arrow T1 ofFIG. 18. For example, the first differential control member 1374 may beinstalled on a guide rail (not illustrated), and may translate along theguide rail in the direction of the arrow T1 of FIG. 18. Thus, when thefirst input pulley 1371P rotates, the first input wire 1371W connectedtherewith rotates, and when the first input wire 1371W rotates, thefirst differential control member 1374 coupled to both end portionsthereof translates in the direction of the arrow T1 of FIG. 18.

The second differential control member 1375 includes a first pulley1375P1, a second pulley 1375P2, and a second differential control bar1375 a. The first pulley 1375P1 and the second pulley 1375P2 arerespectively formed at both end portions of the second differentialcontrol bar 1375 a, and may rotate independently. Also, both endportions of the second input wire 1372W are coupled to both end portionsof the second differential control member 1375, respectively. The seconddifferential control member 1375 may translate in the direction of anarrow T2 of FIG. 18. For example, the second differential control member1375 may be installed on a guide rail (not illustrated), and maytranslate along the guide rail in the direction of the arrow T2 of FIG.18. Thus, when the second input pulley 1372P rotates, the second inputwire 1372W connected therewith rotates, and when the second input wire1372W rotates, the second differential control member 1375 coupled toboth end portions thereof translates in the direction of the arrow T2 ofFIG. 18.

The differential control wire 1376 is connected along the first pulley1374P1 of the first differential control member 1374, the first pulley1375P1 of the second differential control member 1375, the second pulley1374P2 of the first differential control member 1374, and the secondpulley 1375P2 of the second differential control member 1375. Thedifferential control wire 1376 is wound along the four pulleys, and isformed to move according to the translation motions of the firstdifferential control member 1374 and the second differential controlmember 1375. Herein, a fixed point F1 may be formed at the differentialcontrol wire 1376, as a reference point for the movement of thedifferential control wire 1376.

An operation of the second modification of the differential pulley willbe described below.

First, a case where the first input unit 1371 rotates will be describedbelow.

Referring to FIGS. 18 and 19, when the first input pulley 1371P1 of thefirst input unit 1371 rotates in the direction of an arrow A1 of FIG.19, the first input wire 1371W connected therewith moves along the firstinput pulley 1371P1 in the direction of an arrow A2 of FIG. 19. Sincethe first input wire 1371W is connected with the first differentialcontrol member 1374, when the first input wire 1371W moves in thedirection of the arrow A2 of FIG. 19, the first differential controlmember 1374 translates in the direction of an arrow A3. When the firstdifferential control member 1374 translates in the direction of thearrow A3, a point P1 of the differential control wire 1376 of FIG. 18moves to a point P1′ of the differential control wire 1376 of FIG. 19,and thus the differential control wire 1376 moves in the direction of anarrow A4 of FIG. 19. Thus, the output pulley 1373P connected with thedifferential control wire 1376 rotates in the direction of an arrow C.In this case, the first pulley 1374P1 and the second pulley 1374P2 ofthe first differential control member 1374 and the second pulley 1375P2of the second differential control member 1375 rotate in the clockwisedirection.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the rotationof the first input unit 1371 does not affect the second input unit 1372and may be transmitted only to the output unit 1373 to rotate the outputpulley 1373P.

A case where the second input unit 1372 rotates will be described below.

Referring to FIGS. 18 and 20, when the second input pulley 1372P of thesecond input unit 1372 rotates in the direction of an arrow B1 of FIG.20, the second input wire 1372W connected therewith moves along thesecond input pulley 1372P in the direction of an arrow B2 of FIG. 20.Since the second input wire 1372W is connected with the seconddifferential control member 1375, when the second input wire 1372W movesin the direction of the arrow B2 of FIG. 20, the second differentialcontrol member 1375 translates in the direction of an arrow B3. When thesecond differential control member 1375 translates in the direction ofthe arrow B3, a point P2 of the differential control wire 1376 of FIG.18 moves to a point P2′ of the differential control wire 1376 of FIG.20, and thus the differential control wire 1376 moves in the directionof an arrow B4 of FIG. 20. Thus, the output pulley 1373P connected withthe differential control wire 1376 rotates in the direction of an arrowC. In this case, the first pulley 1375P1 and the second pulley 1375P2 ofthe second differential control member 1375 and the first pulley 1374P1of the first differential control member 1374 rotate in the clockwisedirection.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the rotationof the second input unit 1372 does not affect the first input unit 1371and may be transmitted only to the output unit 1373 to rotate the outputpulley 1373P.

A case where the first input unit 1371 and the second input unit 1372rotates together will be described below.

When the first input pulley 1371P of the first input unit 1371 rotatesin the counterclockwise direction, the output pulley 1373P of the outputunit 1373 rotates in the counterclockwise direction; and when the secondinput pulley 1372P of the second input unit 1372 rotates in theclockwise direction, the output pulley 1373P of the output unit 1373rotates in the counterclockwise direction. Thus, when the first inputpulley 1371P of the first input unit 1371 and the second input pulley1372P of the second input unit 1372 rotate in opposite directions, theoutput pulley 1373P of the output unit 1373 rotates as much as the sumof the two rotating forces. On the other hand, when the first inputpulley 1371P of the first input unit 1371 and the second input pulley1372P of the second input unit 1372 rotate in the same direction, theoutput pulley 1373P of the output unit 1373 rotates as much as thedifference between the two rotating forces.

Thus, according to the present invention, when only one of the two ormore input units rotates, only the output unit may be rotated withoutother input units rotating. Also, when the two or more input unitsrotate together, a single rotating force equal to the sum of (or thedifference between) the rotating forces of the two input units may beoutput through the output unit.

Other examples of the second modification of the differential pulley ofthe surgical instrument will be described below. FIGS. 21A to 21E areviews illustrating other examples of the second modification of thedifferential pulley illustrated in FIG. 18. In FIGS. 21A to 21E, thefirst input and the second input are omitted, and first differentialcontrol members 1374 a to 1374 e, second differential control members1375 a to 1375 e, output units 1373 a to 1373 e, and differentialcontrol wires 1376 a to 1376 e connecting them are illustrated. Althoughtheir external shapes are slightly different from each other, therespective examples are substantially identical to the secondmodification of the differential pulley of FIGS. 18 to 20 in that whenthe first input unit (not illustrated) rotates, the first differentialcontrol members 1374 a to 1374 e translate vertically to rotate thedifferential control wires 1376 a to 1376 e to rotate the output units1373 a to 1373 e, and when the second input unit (not illustrated)rotates, the second differential control members 1375 a to 1375 etranslate vertically to rotate the differential control wires 1376 a to1376 e to rotate the output units 1373 a to 1373 e.

The differential pulley of the second modification is a modification ofthe differential pulley illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B, and an exampleof applying the differential pulley of the second modification to thesurgical instrument will not be described herein.

<Third Modification of Differential Pulley> (D4)

FIGS. 22 and 23 are views illustrating a third modification of thedifferential pulley of the surgical instrument 100 illustrated in FIG.2.

As described above, the differential pulley according to the presentinvention includes two or more input units and one input unit, andoutputs rotating forces, which are input from the two or more inputunits, as a desired rotating force, while each of the two or more inputunits does not affect other input units.

Referring to FIGS. 22 and 23, the third modification of the differentialpulley of the surgical instrument includes a first input unit 1381, asecond input unit 1382, an output unit 1383, and a connector 1384.

The first input unit 1381 includes a first rotating axis 1381 a and afirst input pulley 1381 b, and the first input pulley 1381 b is coupledwith the first rotating axis 1381 a to rotate around the first rotatingaxis 1381 a.

The second input unit 1382 includes a second rotating axis 1382 a andtwo second input pulleys 1382 b facing each other, and the two secondinput pulleys 1382 b are not coupled with the second rotating axis 1382a and rotate around the second rotating axis 1382 a. The first inputunit 1381 is formed to extend from the second input pulley 1382 b. Thatis, since the first input pulley 1381 b is connected to the second inputpulley 1382 b by a connecting member (not illustrated), when the secondinput pulley 1382 b rotates, the first input unit 1381, including thefirst input pulley 1381 b connected therewith, rotates.

The output unit 1383 includes a third rotating axis 1383 a and an outputpulley 1383 b, and the output pulley 1383 b is coupled with the thirdrotating axis 1383 a to rotate around the third rotating axis 1383 a.

The connector 1384 includes a fourth rotating axis 1384 a and twoconnecting pulleys 1384 b facing each other, and the two connectingpulleys 1384 b are not coupled with the fourth rotating axis 1384 a androtate around the fourth rotating axis 1384 a.

A differential control wire 1385 is formed to sequentially contact theoutput unit 1383, one of the two connecting pulleys 1384 b, one of thetwo input pulleys 1382 b, the first input pulley 1381 b, the other ofthe two second input pulleys 1382 b, the other of the two connectingpulleys 1384 b, and the output unit 1383 and rotate along the outputunit 1383, the connector 1384, the second input unit 1382, and the firstinput unit 1381.

Although not illustrated, a coupling member (not illustrated) connectingthe first input unit 1381 and the second input unit 1382 may be furtherprovided. The first rotating axis 1381 a of the first input unit 1381and the second rotating axis 1382 a of the second input unit 1382 may beconnected to the coupling member. Since the coupling member and thesecond rotating axis 1382 a are fixedly coupled, when the secondrotating axis 1382 a rotates, the coupling member and the first inputunit 1381 connected therewith rotate together therewith. On the otherhand, since the coupling member and the first rotating axis 1381 a arenot fixedly coupled, even when the first rotating axis 1381 a rotates,the coupling member may not rotate.

An operation of the third modification of the differential pulley willbe described below.

First, a case where the first input unit 1381 rotates will be describedbelow. When the first input pulley 1381 b of the first input unit 1381rotates around the first rotating axis 1381 a, the differential controlwire 1385 and the first input pulley 1381 b rotate together by africtional force or a fixed point and thus the differential control wire1385 wound around the two second input pulleys 1382 b and the connectingpulley 1384 b also move. Consequently, the output pulley 1383 b of theoutput unit 1383 connected to the opposite side of the differentialcontrol wire 1385 also rotate around the third rotating axis 1383 a. Inthis case, the two second input pulleys 1382 a and the two connectingpulleys 1384 b, around which the moving differential control wire 1385is wound, also rotate together.

A case where the second input unit 1382 rotates will be described below.When the second input pulley 1382 b of the second input unit 1382rotates around the second rotating axis 1382 a in the counterclockwisedirection in the state of FIG. 22, the first input unit 1381 rotatesaround the second rotating axis 1382 a in the counterclockwise directionas illustrated in FIG. 23. In this case, when there is no rotation inputto the first input unit 1381 and thus the rotation of the differentialcontrol wire 1385 wound around the first input pulley 1381 b isrelatively small on the first rotating axis 1381 a, the differentialcontrol wire 1385 wound around the first rotating axis 1381 a rotatesaround the second rotating axis 1382 a. Accordingly, the differentialcontrol wire 1385 wound around the two second input pulleys 1382 b ispulled and extended to rotate the two second input pulleys 1382 b. Themovement of the differential control wire 1385 on the two second inputpulleys 1382 b causes the two connecting pulleys 1384 b and the outputpulley 1383 b to rotate.

Thus, according to the present invention, the rotation of one of the twoor more input units may lead to the rotation of the output unit withoutother input units rotating. Also, when the two or more input unitsrotate together, a single rotating force equal to the sum of (or thedifference between) the rotating forces of the two input units may beoutput through the output unit.

The third modification of the differential pulley is different from thefirst and second modifications of the differential pulley in that oneinput unit is provided on the rotating axis of another input unit andthe position of the input unit rotates according to another rotationinput. That is, while the input units are disposed independently of eachother in the first and second modifications of the differential pulley,one input unit is disposed on a coordinate system of another input unitin the third modification of the differential pulley. As an example ofthis, in a second embodiment (which will be described later withreference to FIG. 28), one operation input unit is provided on anotheroperation input unit, and the operation input unit also rotates or movestogether when the other operation input unit rotates or moves.

Although it is illustrated that the output unit 1383, the connector1384, the second input unit 1382, and the first input unit 1381 aresequentially arranged in the order stated, the present invention is notlimited thereto. For example, the positions of the connector 1384 andthe second input unit 1382 may be interchanged with each other. Also inthis case, the first input pulley may be connected to the second inputpulley by a connecting member (not illustrated), and when the secondinput pulley rotates, the first input pulley of the first input unit andthe connecting pulley of the connector connected thereto may rotatetogether therewith.

The differential pulley of the third modification is a modification ofthe differential pulley illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B, and an exampleof applying the differential pulley of the third modification to thesurgical instrument will not be described herein.

<Differential Gear>

FIG. 24 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 100 g according toa modification of the operating force transmitter of the surgicalinstrument 100 illustrated in FIG. 2, and FIG. 25 is a detailed view ofa differential gear of FIG. 24. Since the surgical instrument 100 gaccording to a modification of the operating force transmitter 130 ofthe first embodiment of the present invention is similar to the surgicalinstrument 100 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention and is different from the surgical instrument 100 in terms ofthe configuration of the operating force transmitter, the configurationof the operating force transmitter will be mainly described below.

In this modification, a differential gear is used instead of thedifferential pulleys of FIGS. 2 and 4A. That is, the differential gearof the surgical instrument 100 g illustrated in FIGS. 24 and 25 may beconsidered as a structure in which the pulley and wire of thedifferential pulley of the surgical instrument 100 illustrated in FIG.4A are replaced with a gear.

Referring to FIGS. 24 and 25, the surgical instrument 100 g according toa modification of the operating force transmitter 130 of the firstembodiment of the present invention includes an operator 110, an endtool 120, an operating force transmitter 130, and a connector (notillustrated). The operating force transmitter 130 includes a firstdifferential gear 151 and a second differential gear 152.

In detail, the first differential gear 151 includes a first input unit1511, a second input unit 1512, and an output unit 1513.

The first input unit 1511 includes a first pulley 1511 a and a firstgear 1511 b. The first pulley 1511 a and the first gear 1511 b rotatetogether around the same rotating axis. Herein, the first pulley 1511 aof the first input unit 1511 is connected with the first pulley 1121 aof the yaw operator 112 by the YC1 wire 135YC1 to transmit a rotation ofthe yaw operator 112 to the first input unit 1511. Also, the first gear1511 b of the first input unit 1511 is connected with the output unit1513 to transmit a rotation of the first input unit 1511 to the outputunit 1513.

The second input unit 1512 includes a second pulley 1512 a and a secondgear 1512 b. The second pulley 1512 a and the second gear 1512 b rotatetogether around the same rotating axis. Herein, the second pulley 1512 aof the second input unit 1512 is connected with the first pulley 1131 aof the actuation operator 113 by the AC1 wire 135AC1 to transmit arotation of the actuation operator 113 to the second input unit 1512.Also, the second gear 1512 b of the second input unit 1512 is connectedwith the output unit 1513 to transmit a rotation of the second inputunit 1512 to the output unit 1513.

The output unit 1513 includes an output pulley 1513 a, an extensionportion 1513 b, and a differential control gear 1513 c. Herein, theoutput pulley 1513 a of the output unit 1513 is connected with theoperator control member 115 by the J12 wire 135J12 to transmit arotation of the output unit 1513 to the first jaw 121 of the end tool120 through the operator control member 115. The extension portion 1513b extends in one direction from a rotating axis of the output pulley1513 a to rotate around the rotating axis of the output pulley 1513 aalong with the output pulley 1513 a. The extension portion 1513 b isinserted through the differential control gear 1513 c such that thedifferential control gear 1513 c rotates around the extension portion1513 b.

Herein, the first input unit 1511, the second input unit 1512, and theoutput unit 1513 rotate independently around independent axes.

Herein, the first differential gear 151 includes the first input unit1511, the second input unit 1512, and the output unit 1513, receives aninput of rotating forces from the first input unit 1511 and the secondinput unit 1512, and outputs the sum of (or the difference between) therotating forces through the output unit 1513. That is, when only thefirst input unit 1511 rotates, the rotation of the first input unit 1511is output through the output unit 1513; when only the second input unit1512 rotates, the rotation of the second input unit 1512 is outputthrough the output unit 1513; when the first input unit 1511 and thesecond input unit 1512 rotate in the same direction, the sum of therotations of the first input unit 1511 and the second input unit 1512 isoutput through the output unit 1513; and when the first input unit 1511and the second input unit 1512 rotate in opposite directions, thedifference between the rotations of the first input unit 1511 and thesecond input unit 1512 is output through the output unit 1513. This maybe expressed as the following equation:C=A+B

(where C denotes a rotation of the output unit, A denotes a rotation ofthe first input unit, and B denotes a rotation of the second inputunit.)

By the first differential gear 151 and the second differential gear 152,even when the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113 rotatefreely, the output unit of each differential gear rotates independentlyof the rotations of the yaw operator 112 and the actuation operator 113.Consequently, the output unit of each differential gear moves as much asthe sum of (or the difference between) the rotations of the yaw operator112 and the actuation operator 113 to extract a desired rotating force.

<First Modification of Differential Gear>

FIG. 26 is a view illustrating a first modification of the differentialgear of FIG. 24.

As described above, the differential gear according to the presentinvention includes two or more input units and one input unit, receivesan input of rotating forces from the two or more input units, extracts adesired rotating force from the sum of (or the difference between) theinput rotating forces, and outputs the desired rotating force throughthe output unit.

Referring to FIG. 26, the first modification of the differential gear ofthe surgical instrument includes a first input unit 1561, a second inputunit 1562, an output unit 1563, and a differential control member 1564.The first modification of the differential gear of the surgicalinstrument illustrated in FIG. 26 may be considered as a structure inwhich the pulley and wire in the first modification of the differentialpulley of the surgical instrument illustrated in FIG. 15 are replacedwith a gear.

The first input unit 1561 includes a first pulley 1561P, a first gear1561G, and a first input wire 1561W. The first pulley 1561P and thefirst gear 1561G are connected by the first input wire 1561W, so thatthe first gear 1561G moves vertically when the first pulley 1561Protates.

The second input unit 1562 includes a second pulley 1562P, a second gear1562G, and a second input wire 1562W. The second pulley 1562P and thesecond gear 1562G are connected by the second input wire 1562W, so thatthe second gear 1562G moves vertically when the second pulley 1562Protates.

The output unit 1563 includes an output pulley 1563P and an output wire1563W. The output pulley 1563P and the differential control member 1564are connected by the output wire 1563W. Thus, when the differentialcontrol member 1564 translates, the output pulley 1563P connected withthe differential control member 1564 by the output wire 1563W rotates.

The differential control member 1564 includes a differential controlgear 1564G and a differential control base 1564B. The differentialcontrol gear 1564G is formed to engage with the first gear 1561G and thesecond gear 1562G. Thus, when the first gear 1561G and the second gear1562G move vertically, the differential control gear 1564G rotates andtranslates vertically. That is, the first gear 1561G and the second gear1562G function as a rack, and the differential control gear 1564Gfunctions as a pinion. Thus, the differential control member 1564 maytranslate in the direction of an arrow T of FIG. 26. For example, thedifferential control base 1564B of the differential control member 1564may be installed on a guide rail (not illustrated), so that thedifferential control member 1564 may translate along the guide rail inthe direction of the arrow T of FIG. 26.

Thus, according to the present invention, when only one of the two ormore input units rotates, only the output unit may be rotated withoutother input units rotating. Also, when the two or more input unitsrotate together, a single rotating force equal to the sum of (or thedifference between) the rotating forces of the two input units may beoutput through the output unit.

<Second Modification of Differential Gear>

FIG. 27 is a view illustrating a second modification of the differentialgear of FIG. 24.

As described above, the differential gear according to the presentinvention includes two or more input units and one input unit, receivesan input of rotating forces from the two or more input units, extracts adesired rotating force from the sum of (or the difference between) theinput rotating forces, and outputs the desired rotating force throughthe output unit.

Referring to FIG. 27, the second modification of the differential gearof the surgical instrument includes a first input unit 1571, a secondinput unit 1572, an output unit 1574, and a differential control member1573.

In detail, the first input unit 1571 and the second input unit 1572 maybe provided in the form of a gear that may rotate around a centralrotating axis 1575. In particular, the second input unit 1572 isprovided in the form of a gear that has sawteeth inside a pitchcylinder, and the differential control member 1573 is provided to engagewith the gears of the first input unit 1571 and the second input unit1572. The differential control member 1573 may rotate around adifferential control member gear axis 1573 a that is connected to theoutput unit 1574. The output unit 1574 may rotate around the centralrotating axis 1575.

When only the first input unit 1571 rotates, the differential controlmember 1573 engaged with the gear teeth rotates around the differentialcontrol member gear axis 1573 a and simultaneously rotates around thecentral rotating axis 1575 of the output unit 1574 connected to thedifferential control member gear axis 1573 a. Also, when only the secondinput unit 1572 rotates, the differential control member 1573 engagedwith the gear teeth rotates around the differential control member gearaxis 1573 a and simultaneously rotates around the central rotating axis1575 of the output unit 1574 connected to the differential controlmember gear axis 1573 a. When the first input unit 1571 and the secondinput unit 1572 rotate in the same direction, the differential controlmember 1573 and the output unit 1574 rotate around the central rotatingaxis 1575 in the same direction. In this case, the differential controlmember 1573 may not rotate around the differential control member gearaxis 1573 a.

On the other hand, when the first input unit 1571 and the second inputunit 1572 rotate in opposite directions, the differential control member1573 and the output unit 1574 may not rotate around the central rotatingaxis 1575. In this case, the differential control member 1573 may rotatearound the differential control member gear axis 1573 a.

Thus, according to the present invention, a single rotating force equalto the sum of (or the difference between) the rotation inputs of two ormore input units may be output through the output unit.

MODE OF THE INVENTION <Second Embodiment of Surgical Instrument>(E3+H2+D3)

Hereinafter, a surgical instrument 200 according to a second embodimentof the present invention will be described. The surgical instrument 200according to the second embodiment of the present invention is differentfrom the surgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment ofthe present invention in terms of the configuration of an operator. Thatis, in the surgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment ofthe present invention, the yaw operator and the actuation operator areformed independently of each other and the rotation of the yaw operatingaxis and the rotation of the actuation operating axis are performedindependently of each other, while in the surgical instrument 200according to the second embodiment of the present invention, theactuation operator is formed on the yaw operator and the actuationoperator rotates along with the yaw operator when the yaw operatorrotates. This difference in the configuration of the operator from thefirst embodiment will be described later in detail.

FIG. 28 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 200 according to asecond embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 28, thesurgical instrument 200 according to the second embodiment of thepresent invention includes an operator 210, an end tool 220, anoperating force transmitter 230, and a connector (not illustrated).

The end tool 220 includes a first jaw 221, a second jaw 222, and an endtool control member 223, and the operating force transmitter 230includes a first jaw operating wire 235J1 and a second jaw operatingwire 235J2, so that a pitch operation, a yaw operation, and an actuationoperation of the end tool 220 may be conveniently performed. Since theend tool 220 is substantially identical to the end tool 120 of the firstembodiment, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

The operating force transmitter 230 includes a plurality of pulleys anda plurality of wires 235AY1, 235AY2, 235J1, and 235J2. Since theoperating force transmitter 230 is substantially identical to theoperating force transmitter 130 of the first embodiment, a detaileddescription thereof will be omitted herein.

Hereinafter, the operator 210 of the surgical instrument 200 accordingto the second embodiment of the present invention will be described inmore detail.

Referring to FIG. 28, the operator 210 of the surgical instrument 200according to the second embodiment of the present invention includes apitch operator 211 controlling a pitch motion of the end tool 220, a yawoperator 212 controlling a yaw motion of the end tool 220, and anactuation operator 213 controlling an actuation motion of the end tool220.

The pitch operator 211 includes a pitch operating axis 2111 and a pitchoperating bar 2112. Herein, the pitch operating axis 2111 may be formedin a direction parallel to the Y axis, and the pitch operating bar 2112may be connected with the pitch operating axis 2111 to rotate along withthe pitch operating axis 2111. For example, when the user grips androtates the pitch operating bar 2112, the pitch operating axis 2111connected with the pitch operating bar 2112 and a pitch operating pulley2113 connected therewith rotate together therewith. Then, the resultingrotating force is transmitted to the end tool 220 through the operatingforce transmitter 230, so that the end tool 220 rotates in the samedirection as the rotation direction of the pitch operating axis 2111.That is, when the pitch operator 211 rotates in the clockwise directionaround the pitch operating axis 2111, the end tool 230 also rotates inthe clockwise direction around an end tool pitch operating axis 2231,and when the pitch operator 211 rotates in the counterclockwisedirection around the end tool pitch operating axis 2231, the end tool230 also rotates in the counterclockwise direction around the end toolpitch operating axis 2231. The pitch operating pulley 2113 is integratedwith the pitch operating axis 2111 to rotate along with the pitchoperating axis 2111.

The yaw operator 212 includes a yaw operating axis 2121 and a yawoperating bar 2122. Although it is illustrated that the yaw operatingaxis 2121 is formed to extend from the pitch operating bar 2112, thepresent invention is not limited thereto. For example, the pitchoperating bar 2112 and the yaw operating axis 2121 may be formed asseparate members on different axes. In this case, the yaw operating axis2121 may be formed in various directions by ergonomic design accordingto the structure of the hand of the user gripping the operator 210.

When the pitch operator 211 rotates as described above, a coordinatesystem of the yaw operator 212 may change accordingly. In this case, theyaw operating bar 2122 is formed to rotate around the yaw operating axis2121. For example, when the user holds and rotates the yaw operating bar2122 with the index finger, the yaw operating bar 2122 rotates aroundthe yaw operating axis 2121. Then, the resulting rotating force istransmitted to the end tool 220 through a first yaw-actuation operatingwire 235AY1 and a second yaw-actuation operating wire 235AY2, so thatthe first and second jaws 221 and 222 of the end tool 220 horizontallyrotate in the same direction as the rotation direction of the yawoperator 212.

The actuation operator 213 includes an actuation operating axis 2131, anactuation operating bar 2132, a first actuation operating pulley 2133 a,and a second actuation operating pulley 2133 b. Herein, the actuationoperating bar 2132, the first actuation operating pulley 2133 a, and thesecond actuation operating pulley 2133 b are formed to rotate around theactuation operating axis 2131. For example, when the user holds androtates the actuation operating bar 2132 with the thumb finger, thefirst actuation operating pulley 2133 a and the second actuationoperating pulley 2133 b connected with the actuation operating bar 2132rotate around the actuation operating axis 2131. Then, the resultingrotating force is transmitted to the end tool 220 through the operatingforce transmitter 230, so that the first and second jaws 221 and 222 ofthe end tool 220 perform an actuation operation. Although it isillustrated that the operating axis of the actuation operator isparallel to the operating axis of the yaw operator, the presentinvention is not limited thereto, and they may be formed in variousshapes by ergonomic design.

The actuation operator 213 is formed on a yaw-actuation connector 2124extending from the yaw operator 212. Thus, when the yaw operator 212rotates, the actuation operator 213 also rotates along with the yawoperator 212. A first yaw-actuation operating pulley 214P1 and a secondyaw-actuation operating pulley 214P2 are formed to rotate around the yawoperating axis 2121. The first actuation operating pulley 2133 a and thefirst yaw-actuation operating pulley 214P1 are connected by a firstyaw-actuation connecting wire 214W1, and the first yaw-actuationoperating wire 235AY1 is connected to the first yaw-actuation operatingpulley 214P1. Likewise, the second actuation operating pulley 2133 b andthe second yaw-actuation operating pulley 214P2 are connected by asecond yaw-actuation connecting wire 214W2, and the second yaw-actuationoperating wire 235AY2 is connected to the second yaw-actuation operatingpulley 214P2.

Consequently, the first yaw-actuation operating pulley 214P1 and thesecond yaw-actuation operating pulley 214P2 are formed to rotate whenthe yaw operator 212 rotates and also rotate when the actuation operator213 rotates.

However, the first yaw-actuation connecting wire 214W1 is twisted onetime and connected to the first yaw-actuation operating pulley 214P1 toreversely transmit an operation input of the actuation operator 213,while the second yaw-actuation connecting wire 214W2 is straightlyconnected to the second yaw-actuation operating pulley 214P2 tostraightly transmit an operation input of the actuation operator 213.

The operator 210 of the surgical instrument 200 according to the secondembodiment of the present invention further includes an operator controlmember 215 engaged with the pitch operating axis 2111 of the pitchoperator 211. Since the operator control member 215 is substantiallyidentical to the operator control member 115 described with reference toFIG. 5, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

Overall Operation of Second Embodiment

Hereinafter, an overall configuration for the pitch operation, the yawoperation, and the actuation operation of the surgical instrument 200according to the second embodiment of the present invention will besummarized with reference to the above descriptions.

For the configuration of the end tool 220 of the present embodiment, theoperating force transmitter 230 capable of dividing the operation inputof the operator 210 into a pitch operation, a yaw operation, and anactuation operation is necessary to perform the pitch, yaw, andactuation operations of the end tool 220. As described above, throughthe structure in which the end tool control member 223 and the operatorcontrol member 215 are disposed symmetrical to each other, the rotationoperation of the pitch operator 211 enables the pitch operation of theend tool 220 regardless of the operations of the yaw operator 212 andthe actuation operator 213. However, in order for the operations of theyaw operator 212 and the actuation operator 213 to lead to the yawoperation and the actuation operation of the end tool 220, theoperations of the yaw operator 212 and the actuation operator 213 haveto be converted into the operations of two jaws of the end tool 220. Therotation of the yaw operator 212 causes the two jaws to rotate in thesame direction, and the rotation of the actuation operator 213 causesthe two jaws to rotate in different directions. That is, the first jaw221 rotates as much as the sum of the operation inputs of the yawoperator 212 and the actuation operator 213, and the second jaw 222rotates as much as the difference between the operation inputs of theyaw operator 212 and the actuation operator 213. This may be expressedas the following equation:J1=Y+A(the first jaw rotates in the same direction in both the yawoperation and the actuation operation.)J2=Y−A(the second jaw rotates in the same direction in the yaw operationand rotates in an opposite direction in the actuation operation.)

However, since the actuation operator 213 is disposed on the yawoperator 212, the sum of the operation input of the actuation operator213 and the operation input of the yaw operator 212 is transmitted tothe operating force transmitter 230. This may be expressed as thefollowing equation:Y _(A) =Y+A

This is equal to the above J1 component and may be transmitted to thefirst jaw 221.

However, in order to extract the J2 component of the second jaw 222, thedifference between the operation input of the yaw operator 212 and theoperation input of the actuation operator 213 has to be obtained asdescribed above. To this end, as described above, the firstyaw-actuation connecting wire 214W1 is twisted one time and connected tothe first yaw-actuation operating pulley 214P1 to reversely transmit theoperation input of the actuation operator 213. This may be expressed asthe following equation:Y _(A2) =Y−A

This is equal to the above J2 component and may be transmitted to thesecond jaw 222.

(where Y denotes the rotation of the yaw operating pulley, and A denotesthe rotation of the actuation operating pulley.)

By this configuration, in the operator 210 having the actuation operator213 disposed on the yaw operator 212, the operation inputs of the yawoperator 212 and the actuation operator 213 may be converted into theoperation components of the two jaws. This will be described below inmore detail.

First, the pitch operation will be described below.

As described above, when the user grips the pitch operating bar 2112 ofthe pitch operator 211 of the operator 210 and rotates the pitchoperating bar 2112 around the pitch operating axis 2111 in the directionof an arrow OP of FIG. 28, the operator control member 215 also rotatesaround the pitch operating axis 2111. Then, the first jaw operating wire235J1 wound around the operation control member 215 is pulled toward theoperator 210. At the same time, the second jaw operating wire 235J2wound around the operation control member 215 is unwound from theoperation control member 215. Then, the end tool control member 223connected with the first jaw operating wire 235J1 and the second jawoperating wire 235J2 rotates around the end tool pitch operating axis2231 to perform a pitch motion.

The yaw operation will be described below.

When the user holds and rotates the yaw operating bar 2122 with theindex finger in the direction of an arrow Y of FIG. 28, the yaw operator212 and the actuation operator 213 connected therewith rotate around theyaw operating axis 2121. Then, the resulting rotating force istransmitted to the operation control member 215 through the firstyaw-actuation connecting wire 214W1, the first yaw-actuation operatingpulley 214P1, and the first yaw-actuation operating wire 235AY1 torotate a J11 pulley 215J11 of the operator control member 215 in thedirection of an arrow YA of FIG. 8. When the J11 pulley 215J11 of theoperator control member 215 rotates, the first jaw operating wire 235J1connected therewith is rotated, and the first jaw 221 of the end tool220 that is connected with the first jaw operating wire 235J1 rotates inthe direction of an arrow YJ of FIG. 28.

At the same time, when the user rotates the yaw operating bar 2122 inthe direction of the arrow Y of FIG. 28, the yaw operator 212 and theactuation operator 213 connected therewith rotate around the yawoperating axis 2121. Then, the resulting rotating force is transmittedto the operation control member 215 through the second yaw-actuationconnecting wire 214W2, the second yaw-actuation operating pulley 214P2,and the second yaw-actuation operating wire 235AY2 to rotate a J21pulley 215J21 of the operator control member 215 in the direction of thearrow YA of FIG. 28 When the J21 pulley 215J21 of the operator controlmember 215 rotates, the second jaw operating wire 235J2 connectedtherewith is rotated, and the second jaw 222 of the end tool 220 that isconnected with the second jaw operating wire 235J2 rotates in thedirection of the arrow YJ of FIG. 28.

In this manner, when the yaw operator 212 is rotated in one direction,the first and second jaws 221 and 222 rotate in the same direction toperform a yaw operation.

The actuation operation will be described below.

When the user holds and rotates the actuation operating bar 2132 withthe thumb finger in the direction of an arrow A of FIG. 28, theactuation operator 213 rotates around the actuation operating axis 2131.Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted to the operationcontrol member 215 through the first yaw-actuation connecting wire214W1, the first yaw-actuation operating pulley 214P1, and the firstyaw-actuation operating wire 235AY1 to rotate the J11 pulley 215J11 ofthe operator control member 215 in the direction of the arrow YA of FIG.28 When the J11 pulley 215J11 of the operator control member 215rotates, the first jaw operating wire 235J1 connected therewith isrotated, and the first jaw 221 of the end tool 220 that is connectedwith the first jaw operating wire 235J1 rotates in the direction of thearrow YJ of FIG. 28.

At the same time, when the user rotates the actuation operating bar 2132in the direction of the arrow A of FIG. 28, the actuation operator 213rotates around the actuation operating axis 2131. Then, the resultingrotating force is transmitted to the operation control member 215through the second yaw-actuation connecting wire 214W2, the secondyaw-actuation operating pulley 214P2, and the second yaw-actuationoperating wire 235AY2 to rotate the J21 pulley 215J21 of the operatorcontrol member 215 in a direction opposite to the direction of the arrowYA of FIG. 28. When the J21 pulley 215J21 of the operator control member215 rotates, the second jaw operating wire 235J2 connected therewith isrotated, and the second jaw 222 of the end tool 220 that is connectedwith the second jaw operating wire 235J2 rotates in a direction oppositeto the direction of the arrow YJ of FIG. 28.

In this manner, when the actuation operator 213 is rotated in onedirection, the first and second jaws 221 and 222 rotate in oppositedirections to perform an actuation operation.

Any combination of various configurations of the operator described withreference to FIG. 3A, various configurations of the operating forcetransmitter described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 15 to 27, andvarious modifications described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14 may beapplied to the surgical instrument 200 according to the secondembodiment of the present invention.

<Modification of Operating Force Transmitter of Second Embodiment ofSurgical Instrument> (E3+H2+D4)

FIG. 29 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 200 a according toa modification of the operating force transmitter 230 of the secondembodiment illustrated in FIG. 28. Since the surgical instrument 200 aaccording to a modification of the operating force transmitter 230 ofthe second embodiment of the present invention is similar to thesurgical instrument 200 (see FIG. 28) according to the second embodimentof the present invention and is different from the surgical instrument200 in terms of the configuration of the operating force transmitter,the configuration of the operating force transmitter will be mainlydescribed below.

Referring to FIG. 29, the surgical instrument 200 a according to amodification of the operating force transmitter 230 of the secondembodiment of the present invention includes an operator 210, an endtool 220, an operating force transmitter 230, and a connector (notillustrated).

The end tool 220 includes a first jaw 221, a second jaw 222, and an endtool control member 223, and the operating force transmitter 230includes a first jaw operating wire 235J1 and a second jaw operatingwire 235J2, so that a pitch operation, a yaw operation, and an actuationoperation of the end tool 220 may be conveniently performed. Since theend tool 220 is substantially identical to the end tool 220 of thesecond embodiment described with reference to FIG. 28, a detaileddescription thereof will be omitted herein.

The operating force transmitter 230 includes a plurality of pulleys anda plurality of wires 235AY1, 235AY2, 235J1, and 235J2. The operatingforce transmitter 230 of the surgical instrument 200 a according to thismodification uses the third modification of the differential pulleyillustrated in FIGS. 22 and 23.

In detail, the yaw and actuation operations of the end tool 220 of thismodification are performed by the rotation of two jaws, and theoperation of the operator 210 is converted into a rotation component ofeach jaw of the end tool 220. Thus, the rotation component of each jawmay correspond to the sum of or difference between a yaw operation inputand an actuation operation input as follows:J1=Y+AJ2=Y−A

According to the configuration of the operator of this embodiment, sincethe actuation operator 213 is formed to extend from the yaw operator212, the actuation operator 213 moves along with the rotation of the yawoperator 212. In this case, since the rotation input of actuation is arelative rotation of an actuation pulley with respect to an actuationaxis, it is not affected by the rotation of the yaw operator. Thisconfiguration may be implemented by using the third modification of thedifferential pulley (see FIGS. 22 and 23) in which one input unit isformed on another input unit. Thus, a differential pulley is configuredto include a first input unit corresponding to a reference numeral 2132of FIG. 29 and a second input unit corresponding to a reference numeral2122 of FIG. 29, each of two differential pulleys is connected to onejaw of the end tool 220. One differential pulley according to the aboveequation may be configured to transmit the sum of the two inputs,namely, the yaw input and the actuation input to a relevant jaw, andanother differential pulley may be configured to transmit the differencebetween the two inputs, namely, the yaw input and the actuation input toa relevant jaw.

That is, the operating force transmitter 230 of the surgical instrument200 a according to this modification includes a first differentialpulley 238 and a second differential pulley 239, and each of thedifferential pulleys 238 and 239 includes a first input unit 1381 (seeFIG. 22), a second input unit 1382 (see FIG. 22), an output unit 1383(see FIG. 22), and a connector 1384 (see FIG. 22). In this case, whenonly one of two or more input units rotates, only the output unit isrotated without other input units rotating, and when two or more inputunits rotate simultaneously, a single rotating force equal to the sum of(or the difference between) the rotating forces of two input units isoutput through the output unit.

Any combination of various configurations of the operator described withreference to FIG. 3A, various configurations of the operating forcetransmitter described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 15 to 27, andvarious modifications described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14 may beapplied to the surgical instrument 200 according to the secondembodiment of the present invention.

<Third Embodiment of Surgical Instrument> (E3+H3+D3)

Hereinafter, a surgical instrument 300 according to a third embodimentof the present invention will be described. The surgical instrument 300according to the third embodiment of the present invention is differentfrom the surgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment ofthe present invention in terms of the configuration of an operator. Thatis, the surgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment of thepresent invention includes the yaw operator and the actuation operatorare formed independently of each other such that the rotation of the yawoperating axis and the rotation of the actuation operating axis areperformed independently of each other, while the surgical instrument 300according to the third embodiment of the present invention includes afirst jaw operator and a second jaw operator that operate a first jawand a second jaw independently instead of the yaw operator and theactuation operator. This difference in the configuration of the operatorfrom the first embodiment will be described later in detail.

FIG. 30 is a view illustrating the surgical instrument 300 according tothe third embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 30, thesurgical instrument 300 according to the third embodiment of the presentinvention includes an operator 310, an end tool 320, an operating forcetransmitter 330, and a connector (not illustrated).

The end tool 320 includes a first jaw 321, a second jaw 322, and an endtool control member 323, and the operating force transmitter 330includes a first jaw operating wire 335J12 and a second jaw operatingwire 335J22, so that a pitch operation, a yaw operation, and anactuation operation of the end tool 320 may be conveniently performed.Since the end tool 320 is substantially identical to the end tool 120described with reference to FIG. 5, a detailed description thereof willbe omitted herein.

The operating force transmitter 330 includes a plurality of pulleys anda plurality of wires 335J11, 335J12, 335J21, and 335J22. Since theoperating force transmitter 330 is substantially identical to theoperating force transmitter 130 of the first embodiment, a detaileddescription thereof will be omitted herein.

Hereinafter, the operator 310 of the surgical instrument 300 accordingto the third embodiment of the present invention will be described inmore detail.

Referring to FIG. 30, the operator 310 of the surgical instrument 300according to the third embodiment of the present invention includes apitch operator 311 controlling a pitch motion of the end tool 320, afirst jaw operator 312 controlling a motion of the first jaw 321 of theend tool 320, and a second jaw operator 313 controlling a motion of thesecond jaw 322 of the end tool 320.

The pitch operator 311 includes a pitch operating axis 3111 and a pitchoperating bar 3112. Herein, the pitch operating axis 3111 may be formedin a direction parallel to the Y axis, and the pitch operating bar 3112may be connected with the pitch operating axis 3111 to rotate along withthe pitch operating axis 3111. For example, when the user grips androtates the pitch operating bar 3112, the pitch operating axis 3111connected with the pitch operating bar 3112 and a pitch operating pulley3113 connected therewith rotate together. Then, the resulting rotatingforce is transmitted to the end tool 320 through the operating forcetransmitter 330, so that the end tool 320 rotates in the same directionas the rotation direction of the pitch operating axis 3111. That is,when the pitch operator 311 rotates in the clockwise direction aroundthe pitch operating axis 3111, the end tool 320 also rotates in theclockwise direction around the pitch operating axis 3111, and when thepitch operator 311 rotates in the counterclockwise direction around thepitch operating axis 3111, the end tool 320 also rotates in thecounterclockwise direction around the pitch operating axis 3111. Thepitch operating pulley 3113 is integrated with the pitch operating axis3111 to rotate along with the pitch operating axis 3111.

The first jaw operator 312 includes a first jaw operating axis, a firstjaw operating bar 3122, and a first jaw operating pulley 3123. Althoughit is illustrated that the first jaw operating axis is formed to extendfrom the pitch operating bar 3112 and the pitch operating bar 3112 isinserted into the first jaw operating pulley 3123, the present inventionis not limited thereto. For example, the pitch operating bar 3112 andthe first jaw operating axis may be formed as separate members ondifferent axes. In this case, the first jaw operating axis may be formedin various directions by ergonomic design according to the structure ofthe hand of the user gripping the operator 310. The first jaw operatingwire 335J12 may be connected to the first jaw operating pulley 3123. Thefirst jaw operating bar 3122 and the first jaw operating pulley 3123 areformed to rotate around the first jaw operating axis. For example, whenthe user holds and rotates the first jaw operating bar 3122 with theindex finger, the first jaw operating pulley 3123 connected with thefirst jaw operating bar 3122 rotates around the first jaw operatingaxis. Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted to the end tool320 through the operating force transmitter 330, so that the first jaw321 of the end tool 120 horizontally rotates in the same direction asthe rotation direction of the first jaw operating pulley 3123.

The second jaw operator 313 includes a second jaw operating axis, asecond jaw operating bar 3132, and a second jaw operating pulley 3133.Although it is illustrated that the second jaw operating axis is formedto extend from the pitch operating bar 3112 and the pitch operating bar3112 is inserted into the second jaw operating pulley 3133, the presentinvention is not limited thereto. For example, the pitch operating bar3112 and the second jaw operating axis may be formed as separate memberson different axes. In this case, the second jaw operating axis may beformed in various directions by ergonomic design according to thestructure of the hand of the user gripping the operator 310. The secondjaw operating wire 335J22 may be connected to the second jaw operatingpulley 3133. The second jaw operating bar 3132 and the second jawoperating pulley 3133 are formed to rotate around the second jawoperating axis. For example, when the user holds and rotates the secondjaw operating bar 3132 with the thumb finger, the second jaw operatingpulley 3133 connected with the second jaw operating bar 3132 rotatesaround the second jaw operating axis. Then, the resulting rotating forceis transmitted to the end tool 320 through the operating forcetransmitter 330, so that the second jaw 322 of the end tool 320horizontally rotates in the same direction as the rotation direction ofthe second jaw operating pulley 3133.

The operator 310 of the surgical instrument 300 according to the thirdembodiment of the present invention further includes an operator controlmember 315 engaged with the pitch operating axis 3111 of the pitchoperator 311. Since the operator control member 315 is substantiallyidentical to the operator control member with reference to FIG. 5, adetailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

Overall Operation of Third Embodiment

Hereinafter, an overall configuration for the pitch operation, the yawoperation, and the actuation operation of the surgical instrument 300according to the third embodiment of the present invention will besummarized with reference to the above descriptions.

For the configuration of the end tool 320 of the present embodiment, theoperating force transmitter 330 capable of dividing the operation inputof the operator 310 into a pitch operation, a yaw operation, and anactuation operation is necessary to perform the pitch, yaw, andactuation operations of the end tool 320. As described above, throughthe structure in which the end tool control member 323 and the operatorcontrol member 315 are disposed symmetrical to each other, the rotationoperation of the pitch operator 311 enables the pitch operation of theend tool 320 regardless of the operations of the first jaw operator 312and the second jaw operator 313.

The operator 310 includes the first jaw operator 312 and the second jawoperator 313. Thus, without the need to provide an additionalconfiguration for conversion into the operations of two jaws of the endtool 320, the operation input of the first jaw operator 312 is directlytransmitted to the first jaw 321, and the operation input of the secondjaw operator 313 is directly transmitted to the second jaw 322.

Through this configuration, a pitch operation, a yaw operation (two jawsmoves in the same direction), an actuation operation (two jaws moves inopposite directions) may be implemented. This will be described below inmore detail.

First, the pitch operation will be described below.

As described above, when the user grips the pitch operating bar 3112 ofthe pitch operator 311 of the operator 310 and rotates the pitchoperating bar 3112 around the pitch operating axis 3111 in the directionof an arrow OP of FIG. 30, the operator control member 315 also rotatesaround the pitch operating axis 3111. Then, the first jaw operating wire335J12 wound around the operation control member 315 is pulled towardthe operator 310. At the same time, the second jaw operating wire 335J22wound around the operation control member 315 is unwound from theoperation control member 315. Then, the end tool control member 323connected with the first jaw operating wire 335J12 and the second jawoperating wire 335J22 rotates around the end tool pitch operating axis3231 to perform a pitch motion.

The yaw operation will be described below.

For a yaw operation, the user holds and rotates the first jaw operatingbar 3122 with the index finger in the direction of an arrow J1 of FIG.30, and holds and rotates the second jaw operating bar 3132 with thethumb finger in the direction of an arrow J2 of FIG. 30 (that is,rotates the first jaw operating bar 3122 and the second jaw operatingbar 3132 in the same direction).

Then, the first jaw operating pulley 3123 connected with the first jawoperating bar 3122 rotates around the first jaw operating axis, and theresulting rotating force is transmitted to the operator control member315 through the first jaw operating wire 335J11 to rotate a J11 pulley315J11 of the operator control member 315 in the direction of an arrowYA of FIG. 30. When the J11 pulley 315J11 of the operator control member315 rotates, the first jaw operating wire 335J12 connected therewith isrotated, and the first jaw 321 of the end tool 320 that is connectedwith the first jaw operating wire 335J12 rotates in the direction of anarrow YJ of FIG. 30.

At the same time, the second jaw operating pulley 3133 connected withthe second jaw operating bar 3132 rotates around the second jawoperating axis, and the resulting rotating force is transmitted to theoperator control member 315 through the second jaw operating wire 335J21to rotate a J21 pulley 315J21 of the operator control member 315 in thedirection of the arrow YA of FIG. 30. When the J21 pulley 315J21 of theoperator control member 315 rotates, the second jaw operating wire 335J2connected therewith is rotated, and the second jaw 322 of the end tool320 that is connected with the second jaw operating wire 335J22 rotatesin the direction of the arrow YJ of FIG. 30.

In this manner, when the first jaw operator 312 and the second jawoperator 313 are rotated in the same direction, the first and secondjaws 321 and 322 rotate in the same direction to perform a yawoperation.

The actuation operation will be described below.

For an actuation operation, the user holds and rotates the first jawoperating bar 3122 with the index finger in the direction of the arrowJ1 of FIG. 30, and holds and rotates the second jaw operating bar 3132with the thumb finger in a direction opposite to the direction of thearrow J2 of FIG. 30 (that is, rotates the first jaw operating bar 3122and the second jaw operating bar 3132 in opposite directions).

Then, the first jaw operating pulley 3123 connected with the first jawoperating bar 3122 rotates around the first jaw operating axis, and theresulting rotating force is transmitted to the operator control member315 through the first jaw operating wire 335J11 to rotate the J11 pulley315J11 of the operator control member 315 in the direction of the arrowYA of FIG. 30. When the J11 pulley 315J11 of the operator control member315 rotates, the first jaw operating wire 335J1 connected therewith isrotated, and the first jaw 321 of the end tool 320 that is connectedwith the first jaw operating wire 335J12 rotates in the direction of thearrow YJ of FIG. 30.

At the same time, the second jaw operating pulley 3133 connected withthe second jaw operating bar 3132 rotates around the second jawoperating axis, and the resulting rotating force is transmitted to theoperator control member 315 through the second jaw operating wire 335J22to rotate the J21 pulley 315J21 of the operator control member 315 in adirection opposite to the direction of the arrow YA of FIG. 30. When theJ21 pulley 315J21 of the operator control member 315 rotates, the secondjaw operating wire 335J22 connected therewith is rotated, and the secondjaw 322 of the end tool 320 that is connected with the second jawoperating wire 335J22 rotates in a direction opposite to the directionof the arrow YJ of FIG. 30.

In this manner, when the first jaw operator 312 and the second jawoperator 313 are rotated in opposite directions, the first and secondjaws 321 and 322 rotate in opposite directions to perform an actuationoperation.

Any combination of various configurations of the operator described withreference to FIG. 3A, various configurations of the operating forcetransmitter described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 15 to 27, andvarious modifications described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14 may beapplied to the surgical instrument 300 according to the third embodimentof the present invention.

<Modification of Third Embodiment of Surgical Instrument> (One-ArmedCautery)

FIG. 31 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 300 a according toa modification of the third embodiment illustrated in FIG. 30. Since thesurgical instrument 300 a according to a modification of the thirdembodiment of the present invention is similar to the surgicalinstrument 300 (see FIG. 30) according to the third embodiment of thepresent invention and is different from the surgical instrument 300 inthat only one jaw is provided, the configuration of one jaw will bemainly described below.

Referring to FIG. 31, the surgical instrument 300 a according to amodification of the third embodiment of the present invention includesan operator 310 a, an end tool 320 a, an operating force transmitter 330a, and a connector (not illustrated).

The end tool 320 a includes a jaw 321 a and an end tool control member323 a, and the operating force transmitter 330 a includes only a jawoperating wire 335J1, so that a pitch operation and a yaw operation ofthe end tool 320 a may be conveniently performed. Since the end tool 320a is substantially identical to the end tool 120 described withreference to FIG. 5, a detailed description thereof will be omittedherein.

The operating force transmitter 330 a includes one or more pulleys andwires 335J1. Since the operating force transmitter 330 a issubstantially identical to the operating force transmitter 130 of thefirst embodiment, a detailed description thereof will be omitted herein.

The operator 310 a includes a pitch operator 311 a controlling a pitchmotion of the end tool 320 a and a jaw operator 312 a controlling a jawmotion of the end tool 320 a.

The pitch operator 311 a includes a pitch operating axis 3111 a and apitch operating bar 3112 a.

The jaw operator 312 a includes a jaw operating axis, a jaw operatingbar 3122 a, and a jaw operating pulley 3123 a. Although it isillustrated that the jaw operating axis is formed to extend from thepitch operating bar 3112 a and the pitch operating bar 3112 a isinserted into the jaw operating pulley 3123 a, the present invention isnot limited thereto. For example, the pitch operating bar 3112 a and thejaw operating axis may be formed as separate members on different axes.In this case, the jaw operating axis may be formed in various directionsby ergonomic design according to the structure of the hand of the usergripping the operator 310 a. The jaw operating wire 335J1 may beconnected to the jaw operating pulley 3123 a. The jaw operating bar 3122a and the jaw operating pulley 3123 a are formed to rotate around thejaw operating axis. For example, when the user holds and rotates the jawoperating bar 3122 a with the index finger, the jaw operating pulley3123 a connected with the jaw operating bar 3122 a rotates around thejaw operating axis. Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted tothe end tool 320 a through the operating force transmitter 330 a, sothat the first jaw 321 a of the end tool 320 a horizontally rotate inthe same direction as the rotation direction of the jaw operating pulley3123 a.

<End Tools of Fourth to Sixth Embodiments of Surgical Instrument> (E1)

Hereinafter, surgical instruments 400, 500, and 600 according to fourth,fifth, and sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described.The surgical instruments 400, 500, and 600 according to the fourth,fifth, and sixth embodiment of the present invention are substantiallyidentical to the surgical instruments 100, 200, and 300 according to thefirst, second, and third embodiments of the present invention and aredifferent in terms of the configuration of the end tool from thesurgical instruments 100, 200, and 300 according to the first, second,and third embodiments of the present invention. Thus, the configurationof the end tool applied in common to the fourth, fifth, and sixthembodiment will be described first.

FIGS. 32 to 36 are schematic views illustrating an end tool 420 includedin a surgical instrument 400 according to a fourth embodiment of thepresent invention. FIG. 32 is an exploded perspective view of the endtool 420, FIG. 33 is an XZ-plane side view of the end tool 420, FIG. 34is an XY-plane plan view of the end tool 420, FIG. 35 is a plan viewillustrating a yaw motion of the end tool 420 of FIG. 34, and FIG. 36 isa plan view illustrating an actuation motion of the end tool 420 of FIG.34.

Referring to FIGS. 32 to 36, the end tool 420 included in the surgicalinstrument 400 according to the fourth embodiment of the presentinvention includes a first jaw 421, a second jaw 422, one or more pitchpulleys 423, and one or more yaw pulleys 424. An operating forcetransmitter included in the surgical instrument 400 according to thefourth embodiment of the present invention includes one or more pitchwires 435P, one or more yaw wires 435Y, and an actuation wire 435A.

In the present embodiments, a pitch operation is performed by therotation of the pitch wire wound around the pitch pulley, the yaw wireis formed to intersect the pitch pulley and extend toward the end tool,and the yaw wire is wound around the yaw pulley to perform a yawoperation. When a yaw operation is performed by the rotation of the yawwire, since the yaw wire is formed to intersect the pitch pulley, theyaw wire is minimally affected by the rotation of the pitch pulleyduring a pitch operation. Likewise, the actuation wire is formed tointersect the pitch pulley and the yaw pulley and extend toward the endtool, and is connected to an opening (421 a and 422 a) formed in each ofthe two jaws. The actuation wire is pulled and pushed to perform anactuation operation for opening and closing the two jaws. Since theactuation wire is formed to intersect the pitch pulley and the yawpulley, the actuation wire is minimally affected by the rotations of thepitch pulley and the yaw pulley during a pitch operation and a yawoperation.

In detail, a pitch pulley coupler 440 a is formed to protrude from oneend portion of a connector 440, and the pitch pulley 423 is coupled withthe pitch pulley coupler 440 a to rotate around a pitch rotating axis420PX with respect to the pitch pulley coupler 440 a. Also, the pitchpulley 423 is integrated with a pitch pulley base 423 a, and a yawpulley coupler 423 b is formed on one side of the pitch pulley base 423a. Thus, the pitch pulley 423 is formed to rotate around the pitchrotating axis 420PX, and the yaw pulley coupler 423 b and the pitchpulley base 423 a coupled therewith rotate along with the pitch pulley423. Herein, a pitch wire pass hole 440HP is formed at the one endportion of the connector 440, and the pitch wire 435P extends throughthe pitch wire pass hole 440HP toward the end tool 420.

The yaw pulley 424 is coupled with the yaw pulley coupler 423 b torotate around a yaw rotating axis 420YX with respect to the yaw pulleycoupler 423 b. Also, the yaw pulley 424 is integrated with a yaw pulleybase 424 a. A guide hole 424 b is formed in the yaw pulley base 424 a.The yaw pulley 424 is formed to rotate around the yaw rotating axis420YX, and the yaw pulley base 424 a coupled therewith rotates alongwith the yaw pulley 424. Herein, a yaw wire pass hole 440HY is formed atone end portion of the connector 440, and the yaw wire 435Y passesthrough the yaw wire pass hole 440HY toward the end tool 420.

An actuation wire pass hole 440HA is formed at one end portion of theconnector 440, and the actuation wire 435A passes through the actuationwire pass hole 440HA toward the end tool 420. The actuation wire 435Apassing through the actuation wire pass hole 440HA is connected to anactuation axis 420AX along an actuation wire guide 423G formed at theyaw pulley coupler 423 b.

Guide holes 421 a and 422 a are formed respectively at the first jaw 421and the second jaw 422, and the actuation axis 420AX is inserted throughthe guide hole 421 a of the first jaw 421, the guide hole 422 a of thesecond jaw 422, and the guide hole 424 b of the yaw pulley base 424 a.The actuation wire 435A is coupled to the actuation axis 420AX. When theactuation wire 435A translates, the actuation axis 420AX connectedtherewith translates along the guide hole 424 b to perform an actuationoperation of the first jaw 421 and the second jaw 422.

In the end tool 420 of the surgical instrument 400 according to thefourth embodiment of the present invention, the pulley/wire for a pitchoperation, the pulley/wire for a yaw operation, and the pulley/wire foran actuation operation are separately formed such that one operationdoes not affect other operations. This will be described below in moredetail.

First, the pitch operation of the present embodiment will be describedbelow.

The pitch wire 435P of the operating force transmitter 430 for a pitchoperation of the end tool 420 connects a pitch operator (notillustrated) of an operator (not illustrated) and the pitch pulley 423of the end tool 420. Thus, when the pitch operator rotates around apitch operating axis (not illustrated) in the counterclockwise directionin FIG. 33, the pitch wire 435P connected therewith moves in thedirection of an arrow P2 of FIG. 33. Accordingly, the pitch pulley 423connected with the pitch wire 435P, the yaw pulley 424 connectedtherewith, the first jaw 421, and the second jaw 422 rotate around thepitch rotating axis 420PX in the direction of an arrow P of FIG. 33 toperform a pitch operation. On the other hand, when the pitch operatorrotates around the pitch operating axis in the clockwise direction inFIG. 33, the pitch wire 435P connected therewith moves in the directionof an arrow P1 of FIG. 33. Accordingly, the pitch pulley 423 connectedwith the pitch wire 435P, the yaw pulley 424 connected therewith, thefirst jaw 421, and the second jaw 422 rotate around the pitch rotatingaxis 420PX in the direction of the arrow P of FIG. 33 to perform a pitchoperation.

The yaw operation of the present embodiment will be described below.

The yaw wire 435Y of the operating force transmitter 430 for a yawoperation of the end tool 420 connects a yaw operator (not illustrated)of an operator (not illustrated) and the yaw pulley 424 of the end tool420. Thus, when the yaw operator rotates around a yaw operating axis(not illustrated) in the clockwise direction, the yaw wire 435Yconnected therewith moves in the direction of an arrow Y1 of FIG. 35.Accordingly, the yaw pulley 424 connected with the yaw wire 435Y, andthe first jaw 421 and the second jaw 422 connected therewith rotatearound the yaw rotating axis 420YX in the direction of an arrow Y ofFIG. 35 to perform a yaw operation.

The actuation operation of the present embodiment will be describedbelow.

The actuation wire 435A of the operating force transmitter 430 for anactuation operation of the end tool 420 connects an actuation operator(not illustrated) of an operator (not illustrated) and the actuationaxis 420AX of the end tool 420. Thus, when the actuation operatorrotates around an actuation operating axis (not illustrated), theactuation wire 435A moves linearly in the direction of an arrow A ofFIG. 35. Accordingly, the actuation axis 420AX connected with theactuation wire 435A translates along the guide hole 424 b to perform anactuation operation of the first jaw 421 and the second jaw 422.

<Fourth Embodiment of Surgical Instrument> (E1+H1+D)

Hereinafter, the surgical instrument 400 according to the fourthembodiment of the present invention will be described. In the surgicalinstrument 400 according to the fourth embodiment of the presentinvention, the end tool 420 has the configuration described withreference to FIGS. 32 to 36, and an operator 410 has a yaw operator andan actuation operator formed independently of each other as in thesurgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention (illustrated in FIG. 2), so that a rotation of a yaw operatingaxis and a rotation of an actuation operating axis are performedindependently of each other.

FIG. 37 is a view illustrating the surgical instrument 400 according tothe fourth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 37,the surgical instrument 400 according to the fourth embodiment of thepresent invention includes an operator 410, the end tool 420, theoperating force transmitter 430, and a connector (not illustrated).

The end tool 420 includes the first jaw 421, the second jaw 422, one ormore pitch pulleys 423, and one or more yaw pulleys 424, and theoperating force transmitter 430 includes one or more pitch wires 435P,one or more yaw wires 435Y, and one or more actuation wires 435A. In theend tool 420, the pulley/wire for a pitch operation, the pulley/wire fora yaw operation, and the pulley/wire for an actuation operation areseparately formed such that one operation does not affect otheroperations. Since the end tool 420 is substantially identical to the endtool described with reference to FIGS. 32 to 36, a detailed descriptionthereof will be omitted herein.

The operating force transmitter 430 includes a first differential member431 and a second differential member 432. The first differential member431 and the second differential member 432 each include two or moreinput units and one input unit, receives an input of rotating forcesfrom the two or more input units, extract a desired rotating force fromthe sum of (or the difference between) the input rotating forces, andoutput the desired rotating force through the output unit. The first andsecond differential members 431 and 432 may include various differentialpulleys and differential gears, such as, the differential pulley of thesurgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment illustrated inFIGS. 4A and 4B, the first modification of the differential pulleyillustrated in FIG. 15, the second modification of the differentialpulley illustrated in FIG. 18, and the third modification of thedifferential pulley illustrated in FIG. 22. That is, although thedifferential pulley of FIG. 21E is illustrated as the first and seconddifferential members 431 and 432 of the surgical instrument 400according to the fourth embodiment in FIG. 37, the present invention isnot limited thereto, and various differential pulleys and differentialgears may be used in the present embodiment.

Hereinafter, the operator 410 of the surgical instrument 400 accordingto the fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described inmore detail.

Referring to FIG. 37, the operator 410 of the surgical instrument 400according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention includes apitch operator 411 controlling a pitch motion of the end tool 420, a yawoperator 412 controlling a yaw motion of the end tool 420, and anactuation operator 413 controlling an actuation motion of the end tool420.

The pitch operator 411 includes a pitch operating axis 4111, a pitchoperating bar 4112, and a pitch operating pulley 4113. Herein, the pitchoperating axis 4111 may be formed in a direction parallel to the Y axis,and the pitch operating bar 4112 may be connected with the pitchoperating axis 4111 to rotate along with the pitch operating axis 4111.For example, when the user grips and rotates the pitch operating bar4112, the pitch operating axis 4111 connected with the pitch operatingbar 4112 and the pitch operating pulley 4113 connected therewith rotatetogether therewith. Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted tothe end tool 420 through the operating force transmitter 430, so thatthe end tool 420 rotates in the same direction as the rotation directionof the pitch operating axis 4111. That is, when the pitch operator 411rotates in the clockwise direction around the pitch operating axis 4111,the end tool 420 also rotates in the clockwise direction around a pitchpulley operating axis (not illustrated), and when the pitch operator 411rotates in the counterclockwise direction around the pitch operatingaxis 4111, the end tool 420 also rotates in the counterclockwisedirection around the pitch pulley operating axis. The pitch operatingpulley 4113 is integrated with the pitch operating axis 4111 to rotatealong with the pitch operating axis 4111.

The yaw operator 412 includes a yaw operating axis 4121, a yaw operatingbar 4122, and a yaw operating pulley 4123. A yaw operating wire 435Y2may be connected to the yaw operating pulley 4123. Although it isillustrated that the yaw operating axis 4121 is formed to extend fromthe pitch operating bar 4112, the present invention is not limitedthereto. For example, the pitch operating bar 4112 and the yaw operatingaxis 4121 may be formed as separate members on different axes. In thiscase, the yaw operating axis 4121 may be formed in various directions byergonomic design according to the structure of the hand of the usergripping the operator 410.

As described above, when the pitch operator 411 rotates, a coordinatesystem of the yaw operator 412 may change relatively. The yaw operatingbar 4122 and the yaw operating pulley 4123 are formed to rotate aroundthe yaw operating axis 4121. For example, when the user holds androtates the yaw operating bar 4122 with the index finger, the yawoperating pulley 4123 connected with the yaw operating bar 4122 rotatesaround the yaw operating axis 4121. Then, the resulting rotating forceis transmitted to the end tool 420 through the operating forcetransmitter 430, so that the first and second jaws 420 and 421 of theend tool 420 horizontally rotate in the same direction as the rotationdirection of the yaw operating pulley 4123.

The actuation operator 413 includes an actuation operating axis 4131, anactuation operating bar 4132, and an actuation operating pulley 4133. Anactuation operating wire 435A2 may be connected to the actuationoperating pulley 4133. The actuation operating axis 4131 is formed toextend from the pitch operating bar 4112 and may be formed in thedirection parallel to the Z axis or in various directions by ergonomicdesign according to the structure of the hand of the user gripping theoperator 410. As described above, when the pitch operator 411 rotates, acoordinate system of the actuation operator 413 may change relatively.The actuation operating bar 4132 and the actuation operating pulley 4133are formed to rotate around the actuation operating axis 4131. Forexample, when the user holds and rotates the actuation operating bar4132 with the thumb finger, the actuation operating pulley 4133connected with the actuation operating bar 4132 rotates around theactuation operating axis 4131. Then, the resulting rotating force istransmitted to the end tool 420 through the operating force transmitter430, so that the first and second jaws 420 and 421 of the end tool 120perform an actuation operation.

The pitch operating axis 4111 is inserted into a first yaw-pitch (YP)pulley 414 a and a first actuation-pitch (AP) pulley 415 a such that thefirst YP pulley 414 a and the first AP pulley 415 a rotate around thepitch operating axis 4111.

When the yaw operating bar 4122 rotates, the first YP pulley 414 a and asecond YP pulley 414 b connected therewith rotate along with the yawoperating pulley 4123; and when the pitch operating bar 4112 and the yawoperator 412 and the actuation operator 413 connected therewith rotatetogether around the pitch operating axis 4111, the first YP pulley 414 aand the second YP pulley 414 b connected therewith rotate along with thepitch operating pulley 4113. That is, the first YP pulley 414 a and thesecond YP pulley 414 b may be considered as pulleys that reflect therotations of the yaw operating bar 4122 and the rotation of the pitchoperating bar 4112 together.

In detail, when the yaw operating bar 4122 rotates, the yaw operatingpulley 4123 connected with the yaw operating bar 4122 rotates along withthe yaw operating bar 4122, and thus the yaw operating wire 435Y2 movesto rotate the first YP pulley 414 a and the second YP pulley 414 bconnected therewith. When the pitch operating axis 4111 and the pitchoperating bar 4112 rotate in the direction of an arrow P of FIG. 37, theyaw operating axis 4121 and the yaw operating pulley 4123 also rotatearound the pitch operating axis 4111. Then, the yaw operating wire 435Y2rotates around the pitch operating axis 4111 in the direction of thearrow P of FIG. 37 according to the rotation of the operator 410, andthe first YP pulley 414 a connected therewith also rotates accordingly.Consequently, the first YP pulley 414 a and the second YP pulley 414 brotate when the yaw operating pulley 4123 rotates, and also rotate whenthe pitch operating pulley 4113 rotates. This means that a yaw operationinput and a pitch operation input are added together by the first YPpulley 414 a and the second YP pulley 414 b of the operator 410 tooutput the sum of the yaw operation input and the pitch operation input.

When the actuation operating bar 4132 rotates, the first AP pulley 415 aand a second AP pulley 415 b connected therewith rotate along with theactuation operating pulley 4133; and when the actuation operating bar4112 and the yaw operator 412 and the actuation operator 413 connectedtherewith rotate together around the pitch operating axis 4111, thefirst AP pulley 415 a and the second AP pulley 415 b connected therewithrotate along with the pitch operating pulley 4113. That is, the first APpulley 415 a and the second AP pulley 415 b may be considered as pulleysthat reflect the rotations of the actuation operating bar 4132 and therotation of the pitch operating bar 4112 together.

In detail, when the actuation operating bar 4132 rotates, the actuationoperating pulley 4133 connected with the actuation operating bar 4132rotates along with the actuation operating bar 4132, and thus theactuation operating wire 435A2 connected therewith moves to rotate thefirst AP pulley 415 a and the second AP pulley 415 b connectedtherewith. When the pitch operating axis 4111 and the pitch operatingbar 4112 rotate in the direction of the arrow P of FIG. 37, theactuation operating axis 4131 and the actuation operating pulley 4133also rotate around the pitch operating axis 4111. Then, the actuationoperating wire 435A2 rotates around the pitch operating axis 4111 in thedirection of the arrow P of FIG. 37 according to the rotation of theoperator 410, and the first AP pulley 415 a connected therewith alsorotates accordingly. Consequently, the first AP pulley 415 a and thesecond AP pulley 415 b rotate when the actuation operating pulley 4133rotates, and also rotate when the pitch operating pulley 4113 rotates.This means that an actuation operation input and a pitch operation inputare added together by the first AP pulley 415 a and the second AP pulley415 b of the operator 410 to output the sum of the actuation operationinput and the pitch operation input.

Although it is illustrated that the first YP pulley 414 a is connectedto the second YP pulley 414 b, and the second YP pulley 414 b isconnected to a first input unit 4311 of the first differential member431, this is merely for convenience of description, and the first YPpulley 414 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 4311 ofthe first differential member 431, without using the second YP pulley414 b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the first AP pulley 415 a isconnected to the second AP pulley 415 b, and the second AP pulley 415 bis connected to a first input unit 4321 of the second differentialmember 432, this is merely for convenience of description, and the firstAP pulley 415 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 4321of the second differential member 432, without using the second APpulley 415 b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the pitch operating pulley4113 is connected to a second pitch operating pulley 4113 b, and thesecond pitch operating pulley 4113 b is connected to a second input unit4312 of the first differential member 431 and a second input unit 4322of the second differential member 432, this is merely for convenience ofdescription, and the pitch operating pulley 4113 may be directlyconnected to the second input unit 4312 of the first differential member431 and the second input unit 4322 of the second differential member432, without using the second pitch operating pulley 4113 b.

Overall Operation of Fourth Embodiment

Hereinafter, an overall configuration for the pitch operation, the yawoperation, and the actuation operation of the surgical instrument 400according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention will besummarized with reference to the above descriptions.

In the surgical instrument 400 according to the fourth embodiment of thepresent invention, the first differential member 431 includes the firstinput unit 4311, the second input unit 4312, an output unit 4313, afirst differential control member 4314, a second differential controlmember 4315, and a differential control wire 4316, and the seconddifferential member 432 includes the first input unit 4321, the secondinput unit 4322, an output unit 4323, a first differential controlmember 4324, a second differential control member 4325, and adifferential control wire 4326.

In detail, for the configuration of the end tool 420 of the presentembodiment, the operating force transmitter 430 capable of dividing theoperation input of the operator 410 into a pitch operation, a yawoperation, and an actuation operation is necessary to perform the pitch,yaw, and actuation operations of the end tool 420. The rotationoperation of the pitch operating bar may be directly connected to thepitch operation of the end tool. However, since the yaw operator and theactuation operator are disposed on the pitch operator, the operationinput of the yaw operator and the operation input of the actuationoperator may be added to the pitch operation input prior to transmissionthereof to the operating force transmitter, as described above. This maybe expressed as the following equation:Y _(P) =Y+PA _(P) =A+P

(where Y_(P) denotes a rotation of the Y_(P) pulley, A_(P) denotes arotation of the A_(P) pulley, Y denotes a rotation of the yaw operatingpulley, and P denotes a rotation of the pitch operating pulley.)

Thus, in order to transmit the output of the operator 410 as only the Yand A components to the end tool 420, the operating force transmitter430 extracts the following components:Y=Y _(P) −PA=A _(P) −P

To this end, the operating force transmitter 430 includes a differentialpulley that receives an input of Y_(P) and P and outputs only thedifference (Y component) between Y_(P) and P, and a differential pulleythat receives an input of A_(P) and P and outputs only the difference (Acomponent) between A_(P) and P.

Herein, the first input unit 4311 of the first differential member 431is connected with the first YP pulley 414 a (or the second YP pulley 414b connected therewith) to rotate when the yaw operating pulley 4123rotates and also rotate when the pitch operating pulley 4113 rotates.Also, the second input unit 4312 of the first differential member 431 isconnected with the pitch operating pulley 4113 to rotate when the pitchoperating pulley 4113 rotates. Also, the output unit 4313 of the firstdifferential member 431 is connected with the yaw wire 435Y to controlthe yaw operation of the end tool 420.

The first input unit 4321 of the second differential member 432 isconnected with the first AP pulley 415 a (or the second AP pulley 415 bconnected therewith) to rotate when the actuation operating pulley 4133rotates and also rotate when the pitch operating pulley 4113 rotates.Also, the second input unit 4322 of the second differential member 432is connected with the pitch operating pulley 4113 to rotate when thepitch operating pulley 4113 rotates. Also, the output unit 4323 of thesecond differential member 432 is connected with the actuation wire 435Ato control the actuation operation of the end tool 420.

The pitch operating pulley 4113 is connected with the pitch wire 435P tocontrol the pitch operation of the end tool 420.

First, the pitch operation will be described below.

As described above, when the user grips the pitch operating bar 4112 ofthe pitch operator 411 of the operator 410 and rotates the pitchoperating bar 4112 around the pitch operating axis 4111 in the directionof an arrow P (pitch) of FIG. 37, the pitch operating pulley 4113rotates along with the pitch operating axis 4111. Then, the pitch pulley423 connected with the pitch operating pulley 4113 by the pitch wire435P, the yaw pulley 424 connected therewith, the first jaw 421, and thesecond jaw 422 rotate around the pitch rotating axis 420PX (see FIG. 32)to perform a pitch operation.

In this case, the pitch operation does not affect the output units ofthe differential pulleys 431 and 432 of the operating force transmitter430 which determine the yaw and actuation operations of the end tool420. In more detail, when the first YP pulley 414 a and the first APpulley 415 a rotate around the pitch operating axis 4111 according tothe pitch operation, the first input unit 4311 of the first differentialmember 431 that is connected with the second YP pulley 414 b and thesecond input unit 4312 of the first differential member 431 that isconnected with the pitch operating pulley 4113 rotate; however, sincethe rotations are offset in the first differential member 431, theoutput unit 4313 of the first differential member 431 does not rotate.Likewise, the first input unit 4321 of the second differential member432 that is connected with the second AP pulley 415 b and the secondinput unit 4322 of the second differential member 432 that is connectedwith the pitch operating pulley 4113 rotate; however, since therotations are offset in the second differential member 432, the outputunit 4323 of the second differential member 432 does not rotate. Thus,the pitch operation may be performed independently of the yaw operationand the actuation operation.

The yaw operation of the present embodiment will be described below.

When the user holds and rotates the yaw operating bar 4122 with theindex finger in the direction of an arrow Y of FIG. 37, the yawoperating pulley 4123 connected with the yaw operating bar 4122 rotatesaround the yaw operating axis 4121. Then, the resulting rotating forceis transmitted through the yaw operating wire 435Y2 to the first YPpulley 414 a and the second YP pulley 414 b connected therewith, torotate the second YP pulley 414 b. When the second YP pulley 414 brotates, the first input unit 4311 of the first differential member 431connected therewith and the output unit 4313 of the first differentialmember 431 connected therewith rotate. Consequently, when the outputunit 4313 of the first differential member 431 rotates, the yaw wire435Y connected with the output unit 4313, the yaw pulley 424 connectedwith the yaw wire 435Y, and the first and second jaws 421 and 422connected with the yaw pulley 424 rotate around the yaw rotating axis420YX (see FIG. 32) to perform a yaw operation.

The actuation operation of the present embodiment will be describedbelow.

When the user holds and rotates the actuation operating bar 4132 withthe thumb finger in the direction of an arrow A of FIG. 37, theactuation operating pulley 4133 connected with the actuation operatingbar 4132 rotates around the actuation operating axis 4131. Then, theresulting rotating force is transmitted through the actuation operatingwire 435A2 to the first AP pulley 415 a and the second AP pulley 415 bconnected therewith, to rotate the second AP pulley 415 b. When thesecond AP pulley 415 b rotates, the first input unit 4321 of the seconddifferential member 432 connected therewith and the output unit 4323 ofthe second differential member 432 connected therewith rotate.Consequently, when the output unit 4323 of the second differentialmember 432 rotates, the actuation wire 435A connected with the outputunit 4323 moves linearly in the direction of the arrow A of FIG. 37.Accordingly, the actuation axis 420AX (see FIG. 32) connected with theactuation wire 435A translates to perform an actuation operation of thefirst jaw 421 and the second jaw 422.

A case where the yaw operating pulley 4123 and the pitch operatingpulley 4113 rotate together will be described below.

As described above, the first YP pulley 414 a and the second YP pulley414 b connected therewith rotate along with the yaw operating pulley4123 when the yaw operating pulley 4123 rotates, and rotate along withthe pitch operating pulley 4113 when the pitch operating pulley 4113rotates. The yaw wire 435Y for performing the yaw operation of the endtool 420 is only affected by the operation of the yaw operator 412 butnot by the operation of the pitch operator 411. Thus, the first inputunit 4311 of the first differential member 431 is connected with thesecond YP pulley 414 b, and the second input unit 4312 of the firstdifferential member 431 is connected with the pitch operating pulley4113, to extract only a pure yaw operation control component from therotation of the pitch operating pulley 4113 and the rotation of the yawoperating pulley 4123.

According to the present invention, even when the yaw operator 412rotates along with the pitch operating axis 4111, the yaw operation ofthe end tool 420 may depend only on the operation of the yaw operator412 and not be affected by the pitch operating axis 4111.

A case where the actuation operating pulley 4133 and the pitch operatingpulley 4113 rotate together will be described below.

As described above, the first AP pulley 415 a and the second AP pulley415 b connected therewith rotate along with the actuation operatingpulley 4133 when the actuation operating pulley 4133 rotates, and rotatealong with the pitch operating pulley 4113 when the pitch operating axis4111 rotates. The actuation wire 435A for performing the actuationoperation of the end tool 420 is only affected by the operation of theactuation operator 413 but not by the operation of the pitch operator411. Thus, the first input unit 4321 of the second differential member432 is connected with the second AP pulley 415 b, and the second inputunit 4322 of the second differential member 432 is connected with thepitch operating pulley 4113, to extract only a pure actuation operationcontrol component from the rotation of the pitch operating pulley 4113and the rotation of the actuation operating pulley 4133.

According to the present invention, even when the actuation operator 413rotates along with the pitch operating pulley 4113, the actuationoperation of the end tool 420 may depend only on the operation of theactuation operator 413 and not be affected by the pitch operating pulley4113.

Thus, as described above, the pitch, yaw, and actuation operations ofthe operator are independently divided into the pitch, yaw, andactuation operations of the end tool. Also, even when the pitch, yaw,and actuation operations of the operator occur simultaneously or not,the pitch, yaw, and actuation operations of the operator may beindependently divided into the pitch, yaw, and actuation operations ofthe end tool.

Any combination of various configurations of the operator described withreference to FIG. 3A, various configurations of the operating forcetransmitter described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 15 to 27, andvarious modifications described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14 may beapplied to the surgical instrument 400 according to the fourthembodiment of the present invention.

<Fifth Embodiment of Surgical Instrument> (E1+H2+D)

Hereinafter, the surgical instrument 500 according to the fifthembodiment of the present invention will be described. In the surgicalinstrument 500 according to the fifth embodiment of the presentinvention, an end tool 520 has the configuration described withreference to FIGS. 32 to 36, and an operator 510 has an actuationoperator formed on a yaw operator as in the surgical instrument 200according to the second embodiment of the present invention (illustratedin FIG. 8), so that the actuation operator rotates along with the yawoperator when the yaw operator rotates.

FIG. 38 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 500 according to afifth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 38, thesurgical instrument 500 according to the fifth embodiment of the presentinvention includes an operator 510, an end tool 520, an operating forcetransmitter 530, and a connector (not illustrated).

The end tool 520 includes a first jaw 521, a second jaw 522, one or morepitch pulleys 523, and one or more yaw pulleys 524, and the operatingforce transmitter 530 includes one or more pitch wires 535P, one or moreyaw wires 535Y, and one or more actuation wires 535A. In the end tool520, the pulley/wire for a pitch operation, the pulley/wire for a yawoperation, and the pulley/wire for an actuation operation are separatelyformed such that one operation does not affect other operations. Sincethe end tool 520 is substantially identical to the end tool 420described with reference to FIGS. 32 to 36, a detailed descriptionthereof will be omitted herein.

The operating force transmitter 530 includes a first differential member531 and a second differential member 532. The first differential member531 and the second differential member 532 includes two or more inputunits and one input unit, receives an input of rotating forces from thetwo or more input units, extracts a desired rotating force from the sumof (or the difference between) the input rotating forces, and outputsthe desired rotating force through the output unit. The first and seconddifferential members 531 and 532 may include various differentialpulleys and differential gears, such as, the differential pulley of thesurgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment illustrated inFIGS. 4A and 4B, the first modification of the differential pulleyillustrated in FIG. 15, the second modification of the differentialpulley illustrated in FIG. 18, and the third modification of thedifferential pulley illustrated in FIG. 22. That is, although thedifferential pulley of FIG. 21E is illustrated as the first and seconddifferential members 531 and 532 of the surgical instrument 500according to the fifth embodiment in FIG. 38, the present invention isnot limited thereto, and various differential pulleys and differentialgears may be used in the present embodiment.

Hereinafter, the operator 510 of the surgical instrument 500 accordingto the fifth embodiment of the present invention will be described inmore detail.

Referring to FIG. 38, the operator 510 of the surgical instrument 500according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention includes apitch operator 511 controlling a pitch motion of the end tool 520, a yawoperator 512 controlling a yaw motion of the end tool 520, and anactuation operator 513 controlling an actuation motion of the end tool520.

The pitch operator 511 includes a pitch operating axis 5111, a pitchoperating bar 5112, and a pitch operating pulley 5113. Herein, the pitchoperating axis 5111 may be formed in a direction parallel to the Y axis,and the pitch operating bar 5112 may be connected with the pitchoperating axis 5111 to rotate along with the pitch operating axis 5111.For example, when the user grips and rotates the pitch operating bar5112, the pitch operating axis 5111 connected with the pitch operatingbar 5112 and the pitch operating pulley 5113 connected therewith rotatetogether therewith. Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted tothe end tool 520 through the operating force transmitter 530, so thatthe end tool 520 rotates in the same direction as the rotation directionof the pitch operating axis 5111. That is, when the pitch operator 511rotates in the clockwise direction around the pitch operating axis 5111,the end tool 520 also rotates in the clockwise direction around a pitchpulley operating axis (not illustrated), and when the pitch operator 511rotates in the counterclockwise direction around the pitch operatingaxis 5111, the end tool 520 also rotates in the counterclockwisedirection around the pitch pulley operating axis. The pitch operatingpulley 5113 is integrated with the pitch operating axis 5111 to rotatealong with the pitch operating axis 5111.

The yaw operator 512 includes a yaw operating axis 5121, a yaw operatingbar 5122, and a yaw operating pulley 5123. Although it is illustratedthat the yaw operating axis 5121 is formed to extend from the pitchoperating bar 5112, the present invention is not limited thereto. Forexample, the pitch operating bar 5112 and the yaw operating axis 5121may be formed as separate members on different axes. In this case, theyaw operating axis 5121 may be formed in various directions by ergonomicdesign according to the structure of the hand of the user gripping theoperator 510. A yaw operating wire 535Y2 may be connected to the yawoperating pulley 5123.

As described above, when the pitch operator 511 rotates, a coordinatesystem of the yaw operator 512 may change relatively. The yaw operatingbar 5122 and the yaw operating pulley 5123 are formed to rotate aroundthe yaw operating axis 5121. For example, when the user holds androtates the yaw operating bar 5122 with the index finger, the yawoperating pulley 5123 connected with the yaw operating bar 5122 rotatesaround the yaw operating axis 5121. Then, the resulting rotating forceis transmitted to the end tool 520 through the yaw operating wire 535Y2,so that the first and second jaws 521 and 522 of the end tool 520horizontally rotate in the same direction as the rotation direction ofthe yaw operating pulley 5123.

The actuation operator 513 includes an actuation operating axis 5131, anactuation operating bar 5132, and an actuation operating pulley 5133.The actuation operating bar 5132 and the actuation operating pulley 5133are formed to rotate around the actuation operating axis 5131. Forexample, when the user holds and rotates the actuation operating bar5132 with the thumb finger, the actuation operating pulley 5133connected with the actuation operating bar 5132 rotates around theactuation operating axis 5131. Then, the resulting rotating force istransmitted to the end tool 520 through the operating force transmitter530, so that the first and second jaws 521 and 522 of the end tool 520perform an actuation operation. In this case, the actuation operator 513may be formed in various directions by ergonomic design according to thestructure of the hand of the user gripping the operator 510.

The actuation operator 513 is formed on a yaw-actuation connector 5124extending from the yaw operator 512. Thus, when the yaw operating bar5122 of the yaw operator 512 rotates, the actuation operator 513 rotatesaround the yaw operating axis 5121 along with the yaw operating bar 5122and the yaw operating pulley 5123. A yaw-actuation operating pulley 514Pmay be formed to rotate around the yaw operating axis 5121. Theactuation operating pulley 5133 and the yaw-actuation operating pulley514P are connected by a yaw-actuation connecting wire 514W. Ayaw-actuation operating wire 535AY is connected to the yaw-actuationoperating pulley 514P.

Thus, when the yaw operating bar 5122 rotates, the yaw-actuationconnector 5124 extending therefrom and the actuation operator 513 rotatearound the yaw operating axis 5121, the yaw-actuation connecting wire514W connected to the actuation operating pulley 5133 also rotatesaround the yaw operating axis 5121, and consequently, the yaw-actuationoperating pulley 514P rotates around the yaw operating axis 5121.

Consequently, the yaw-actuation operating pulley 514P rotates when theyaw operating pulley 5123 rotates, and also rotates when the actuationoperating pulley 5133 rotates.

The pitch operating axis 5111 is inserted into a first yaw-pitch (YP)pulley 514 a and a first actuation-yaw-pitch (AYP) pulley 515 a suchthat the first YP pulley 514 a and the first AYP pulley 515 a rotatearound the pitch operating axis 5111.

When the yaw operating bar 5122 rotates, the first YP pulley 514 a and asecond YP pulley 514 b connected therewith rotate along with the yawoperating pulley 5123; and when the pitch operating bar 5112 and the yawoperator 512 and the actuation operator 513 connected therewith rotatetogether around the pitch operating axis 5111, the first YP pulley 514 aand the second YP pulley 514 b connected therewith rotate along with thepitch operating pulley 5113. That is, the first YP pulley 514 a and thesecond YP pulley 514 b may be considered as pulleys that reflect therotations of the yaw operating bar 5122 and the rotation of the pitchoperating bar 5112 together.

In detail, when the yaw operating bar 5122 rotates, the yaw operatingpulley 5123 connected with the yaw operating bar 5122 rotates along withthe yaw operating bar 5122, and thus the yaw operating wire 535Y2 movesto rotate the first YP pulley 514 a and the second YP pulley 514 bconnected therewith. When the pitch operating axis 5111 and the pitchoperating bar 5112 rotate in the direction of an arrow P of FIG. 38, theyaw operating axis 5121 and the yaw operating pulley 5123 also rotatearound the pitch operating axis 5111. Then, the yaw operating wire 535Y2rotates around the pitch operating axis 5111 in the direction of thearrow P of FIG. 38 according to the rotation of the operator 510, andthe first YP pulley 514 a connected therewith also rotates accordingly.Consequently, the first YP pulley 514 a and the second YP pulley 514 brotate when the yaw operating pulley 5123 rotates, and also rotate whenthe pitch operating pulley 5113 rotates. This means that a yaw operationinput and a pitch operation input are added together by the first YPpulley 514 a and the second YP pulley 514 b of the operator 510 tooutput the sum of the yaw operation input and the pitch operation input.

The first AYP pulley 515 a and a second AYP pulley 515 b connectedtherewith rotate along with the actuation operating pulley 5133 when theactuation operating bar 5132 rotates, rotate along with the yawoperating pulley 5123 when the yaw operating bar 5122 rotates, androtate along with the pitch operating pulley 5113 when the pitchoperating bar 5112 rotates. That is, the first AYP pulley 515 a and thesecond AYP pulley 515 b may be considered as pulleys that reflect therotations of the actuation operating bar 5132 and the rotation of theyaw operating bar 5122 together.

In detail, when the actuation operating bar 5132 rotates, the actuationoperating pulley 5133 connected with the actuation operating bar 5132rotates along with the actuation operating bar 5132, and thus theyaw-actuation connecting wire 514W moves to rotate the yaw-actuationoperating pulley 514P. When the yaw-actuation operating pulley 514Protates, the yaw-actuation operating wire 535AY connected therewithmoves to rotate the first AYP pulley 515 a and the second AYP pulley 515b connected therewith. When the yaw operating bar 5122 rotates, theactuation operator 513 connected with the yaw operating bar 5122 rotatesalong with the yaw operating bar 5122, and thus the yaw-actuationconnecting wire 514W connected with the actuation operating pulley 5133of the actuation operator 513 rotates around the yaw operating axis 5121to rotate the yaw-actuation operating pulley 514P. When theyaw-actuation operating pulley 514P rotates, the yaw-actuation operatingwire 535AY connected therewith moves to rotate the first AYP pulley 515a and the second AYP pulley 515 b connected therewith. When the pitchoperating axis 5111 and the pitch operating bar 5112 rotate in thedirection of the arrow P of FIG. 38, the actuation operating axis 5131and the actuation operating pulley 5133 also rotate around the pitchoperating axis 5111. Then, the yaw-actuation operating wire 535AYrotates around the pitch operating axis 5111 in the direction of thearrow P of FIG. 38 according to the rotation of the operator 510, andthe first AYP pulley 515 a connected therewith also rotates accordingly.Consequently, the first AYP pulley 515 a and the second AYP pulley 515 brotate when the actuation operating bar 5132 rotates, rotate when theyaw operating bar 5122 rotates, and rotate when the pitch operating bar5112 rotates. This means that an actuation operation input, a yawoperation input, and a pitch operation input are added together by thefirst AYP pulley 515 a and the second AYP pulley 515 b of the operator510 to output the sum of the actuation operation input, the yawoperation input, and the pitch operation input.

Although it is illustrated that the first YP pulley 514 a is connectedto the second YP pulley 514 b, and the second YP pulley 514 b isconnected to a first input unit 5311 of the first differential member531, this is merely for convenience of description, and the first YPpulley 514 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 5311 ofthe first differential member 531, without using the second YP pulley514 b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the first AYP pulley 515 a isconnected to the second AYP pulley 515 b, and the second AYP pulley 515b is connected to a first input unit 5321 of the second differentialmember 532, this is merely for convenience of description, and the firstAYP pulley 515 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 5321of the second differential member 532, without using the second AYPpulley 515 b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the pitch operating pulley5113 is connected to a second pitch operating pulley 5113 b, and thesecond pitch operating pulley 5113 b is connected to a second input unit5312 of the first differential member 531, this is merely forconvenience of description, and the pitch operating pulley 5113 may bedirectly connected to the second input unit 5312 of the firstdifferential member 531, without using the second pitch operating pulley5113 b.

Overall Operation of Fifth Embodiment

Hereinafter, an overall configuration for the pitch operation, the yawoperation, and the actuation operation of the surgical instrument 500according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention will besummarized with reference to the above descriptions.

In the surgical instrument 500 according to the fifth embodiment of thepresent invention, the first differential member 531 includes the firstinput unit 5311, the second input unit 5312, an output unit 5313, afirst differential control member 5314, a second differential controlmember 5315, and a differential control wire 5316, and the seconddifferential member 532 includes a first input unit 5321, a second inputunit 5322, an output unit 5323, a first differential control member5324, a second differential control member 5325, and a differentialcontrol wire 5326.

For the configuration of the end tool 520 of the present embodiment, theoperating force transmitter 530 capable of dividing the operation inputof the operator 510 into a pitch operation, a yaw operation, and anactuation operation is necessary to perform the pitch, yaw, andactuation operations of the end tool 520. The rotation operation of thepitch operating bar may be directly connected to the pitch operation ofthe end tool. However, since the yaw operator and the actuation operatorare disposed on the pitch operator and the actuation operator isdisposed on the yaw operator, the yaw operation input is added to thepitch operation input and the actuation operation input is added to theyaw operation input and the pitch operation input, prior to transmissionthereof to the operating force transmitter, as described above. This maybe expressed as the following equation:Y _(P) =Y+PA _(YP) =A+Y+P(A _(Y) =A+Y)

(where Y_(P) denotes a rotation of the Y_(P) pulley, A_(YP) denotes arotation of the A_(YP) pulley, A denotes a rotation of the actuationoperating pulley, Y denotes a rotation of the yaw operating pulley, andP denotes a rotation of the pitch operating pulley.)

Thus, in order to transmit the output of the operator 510 as only the Yand A components to the end tool 520, the operating force transmitter530 extracts the following components:Y=Y _(P) −PA=A _(YP) −Y _(P)

To this end, the operating force transmitter 530 includes a differentialpulley that receives an input of Y_(P) and P and outputs only thedifference (Y component) between Y_(P) and P, and a differential pulleythat receives an input of A_(YP) and Y_(P) and outputs only thedifference (A component) between A_(YP) and Y_(P).

Herein, the first input unit 5311 of the first differential member 531is connected with the first YP pulley 514 a (or the second YP pulley 514b connected therewith) to rotate when the yaw operating pulley 5123rotates and also rotate when the pitch operating pulley 5113 rotates.Also, the second input unit 5312 of the first differential member 531 isconnected with the pitch operating pulley 5113 to rotate when the pitchoperating pulley 5113 rotates. Also, the output unit 5313 of the firstdifferential member 531 is connected with the yaw wire 535Y to controlthe yaw operation of the end tool 520.

The first input unit 5321 of the second differential member 532 isconnected with the first AYP pulley 515 a (or the second AYP pulley 515b connected therewith) to rotate when the actuation operating pulley5133 rotates, rotate when the yaw operating pulley 5123 rotates, androtate when the pitch operating pulley 5113 rotates. Also, the secondinput unit 5322 of the second differential member 532 is connected withthe second YP pulley 514 b to rotate when the second YP pulley 514 brotates. Also, the output unit 5323 of the second differential member532 is connected with the actuation wire 535A to control the actuationoperation of the end tool 520.

The pitch operating pulley 5113 is connected with the pitch wire 535P tocontrol the pitch operation of the end tool 520.

First, the pitch operation will be described below.

As described above, when the user grips the pitch operating bar 5112 ofthe pitch operator 511 of the operator 510 and rotates the pitchoperating bar 5112 around the pitch operating axis 5111 in the directionof an arrow P of FIG. 38, the pitch operating pulley 5113 rotates alongwith the pitch operating axis 5111. Then, the pitch pulley 523 connectedwith the pitch operating pulley 5113 by the pitch wire 535P, the yawpulley 524 connected therewith, the first jaw 521, and the second jaw522 rotate around the pitch rotating axis 420PX (see FIG. 32) to performa pitch operation.

In this case, the pitch operation does not affect the first and seconddifferential pulleys 531 and 532 of the operating force transmitter 530which determine the yaw and actuation operations of the end tool 520. Inmore detail, when the first YP pulley 514 a and the first AYP pulley 515a rotate around the pitch operating axis 5111 according to the pitchoperation, the first input unit 5311 of the first differential member531 that is connected with the second YP pulley 514 b and the secondinput unit 5312 of the first differential member 531 that is connectedwith the pitch operating pulley 5113 rotate; however, since therotations are offset in the first differential member 531, the outputunit 5313 of the first differential member 531 does not rotate.Likewise, the first input unit 5321 of the second differential member532 that is connected with the second AYP pulley 515 b and the secondinput unit 5322 of the second differential member 532 that is connectedwith the second YP pulley 514 b rotate; however, since the rotations areoffset in the second differential member 532, the output unit 5323 ofthe second differential member 532 does not rotate. Thus, the pitchoperation may be performed independently of the yaw operation and theactuation operation.

The yaw operation of the present embodiment will be described below.

When the user holds and rotates the yaw operating bar 5122 with theindex finger in the direction of an arrow Y of FIG. 38, the yawoperating pulley 5123 connected with the yaw operating bar 5122 rotatesaround the yaw operating axis 5121. Then, the resulting rotating forceis transmitted through the yaw operating wire 535Y2 to the first YPpulley 514 a and the second YP pulley 514 b connected therewith, torotate the second YP pulley 514 b. When the second YP pulley 514 brotates, the first input unit 5311 of the first differential member 531connected therewith and the output unit 5313 of the first differentialmember 531 connected therewith rotate. Consequently, when the outputunit 5313 of the first differential member 531 rotates, the yaw wire535Y connected with the output unit 5313, the yaw pulley 524 connectedwith the yaw wire 535Y, and the first and second jaws 521 and 522connected with the yaw pulley 524 rotate around the yaw rotating axis420YX (see FIG. 32) to perform a yaw operation.

The actuation operation of the present embodiment will be describedbelow.

When the user holds and rotates the actuation operating bar 5132 withthe thumb finger in the direction of an arrow A of FIG. 38, theactuation operating pulley 5133 connected with the actuation operatingbar 5132 rotates around the actuation operating axis 5131. Then, theresulting rotating force is transmitted through the yaw-actuationconnecting wire 514W to the yaw-actuation operating pulley 514P. Whenthe yaw-actuation operating pulley 514P rotates, the resulting rotatingforce is transmitted through the yaw-actuation operating wire 535AYconnected therewith to the first AYP pulley 515 a and the second AYPpulley 515 b connected therewith to rotate the second AYP pulley 515 b.When the second AYP pulley 515 b rotates, the first input unit 5321 ofthe second differential member 532 connected therewith and the outputunit 5323 of the second differential member 532 connected therewithrotate. Consequently, when the output unit 5323 of the seconddifferential member 532 rotates, the actuation wire 535A connected withthe output unit 5323 moves linearly in the direction of the arrow A ofFIG. 38. Accordingly, the actuation axis 420AX (see FIG. 32) connectedwith the actuation wire 535A translates to perform an actuationoperation of the first jaw 521 and the second jaw 522.

A case where the yaw operating pulley 5123 and the pitch operatingpulley 5113 rotate together will be described below.

As described above, the first YP pulley 514 a and the second YP pulley514 b connected therewith rotate along with the yaw operating pulley5123 when the yaw operating pulley 5123 rotates, and rotate along withthe pitch operating pulley 5113 when the pitch operating axis 5111rotates. The yaw wire 535Y for performing the yaw operation of the endtool 520 is only affected by the operation of the yaw operator 512 butnot by the operation of the pitch operator 511. Thus, the first inputunit 5311 of the first differential member 531 is connected with thesecond YP pulley 514 b, and the second input unit 5312 of the firstdifferential member 531 is connected with the pitch operating pulley5113, to extract only a pure yaw operation control component from therotation of the pitch operating pulley 5113 and the rotation of the yawoperating pulley 5123.

According to the present invention, even when the yaw operator 512rotates along with the pitch operating axis 5111, the yaw operation ofthe end tool 520 may depend only on the operation of the yaw operator512 and not be affected by the pitch operating axis 5111.

A case where the actuation operating pulley 5133, the yaw operatingpulley 5123, and the pitch operating pulley 5113 rotate together will bedescribed below.

As described above, the first AYP pulley 515 a and the second AYP pulley515 b connected therewith rotate along with the actuation operatingpulley 5133 when the actuation operating pulley 5133 rotates, rotatealong with the yaw operating pulley 5123 when the yaw operating pulley5123 rotates, and rotate along with the pitch operating pulley 5113 whenthe pitch operating axis 5111 rotates. The actuation wire 535A forperforming the actuation operation of the end tool 520 is only affectedby the operation of the actuation operator 513 but not by the operationof the pitch operator 511 and the operation of the yaw operator 512.Thus, the first input unit 5321 of the second differential member 532 isconnected with the second AYP pulley 515 b, and the second input unit5322 of the second differential member 532 is connected with the secondYP pulley 514 b, to extract only a pure actuation operation controlcomponent from the rotation of the pitch operating pulley 5113, therotation of the yaw operating pulley 5123, and the rotation of theactuation operating pulley 5133.

According to the present invention, even when the actuation operator 513rotates along with the yaw operating pulley 5123 or the pitch operatingpulley 5113, the actuation operation of the end tool 420 may depend onlyon the operation of the actuation operator 513 and not be affected bythe yaw operating pulley 5123 or the pitch operating pulley 5113.

Thus, as described above, the pitch, yaw, and actuation operations ofthe operator are independently divided into the pitch, yaw, andactuation operations of the end tool. Also, even when the pitch, yaw,and actuation operations of the operator occur simultaneously or not,the pitch, yaw, and actuation operations of the operator may beindependently divided into the pitch, yaw, and actuation operations ofthe end tool.

Any combination of various configurations of the operator described withreference to FIG. 3A, various configurations of the operating forcetransmitter described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 15 to 27, andvarious modifications described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14 may beapplied to the surgical instrument 500 according to the fifth embodimentof the present invention.

<Sixth Embodiment of Surgical Instrument> (E1+H3+D)

Hereinafter, the surgical instrument 600 according to the sixthembodiment of the present invention will be described. In the surgicalinstrument 600 according to the sixth embodiment of the presentinvention, an end tool 620 has the configuration described withreference to FIGS. 32 to 36, and an operator 610 includes a first jawoperator and a second jaw operator that operate a first jaw and secondjaw independently instead of the yaw operator and the actuation operatoras in the surgical instrument 300 according to third second embodimentillustrated in FIG. 30.

FIG. 39 is a view illustrating the surgical instrument 600 according tothe sixth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 39, thesurgical instrument 600 according to the sixth embodiment of the presentinvention includes the operator 610, the end tool 620, an operatingforce transmitter 630, and a connector (not illustrated).

The end tool 620 includes a first jaw 621, a second jaw 622, one or morepitch pulleys 623, and one or more yaw pulleys 624, and the operatingforce transmitter 630 includes one or more pitch wires 635P, one or moreyaw wires 635Y, and one or more actuation wires 635A. In the end tool620, the pulley/wire for a pitch operation, the pulley/wire for a yawoperation, and the pulley/wire for an actuation operation are separatelyformed such that one operation does not affect other operations. Sincethe end tool 620 is substantially identical to the end tool 420described with reference to FIGS. 32 to 36, a detailed descriptionthereof will be omitted herein.

The operating force transmitter 630 includes a first differential member631 and a second differential member 632. The first differential member631 and the second differential member 632 each include two or moreinput units and one input unit, receive an input of rotating forces fromthe two or more input units, extract a desired rotating force from thesum of (or the difference between) the input rotating forces, and outputthe desired rotating force through the output unit. The first and seconddifferential members 631 and 632 may include various differentialpulleys and differential gears, such as, the differential pulley of thesurgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment illustrated inFIGS. 4A and 4B, the first modification of the differential pulleyillustrated in FIG. 15, the second modification of the differentialpulley illustrated in FIG. 18, and the third modification of thedifferential pulley illustrated in FIG. 22. That is, although thedifferential pulley of FIG. 21E is illustrated as the first and seconddifferential members 631 and 632 of the surgical instrument 600according to the sixth embodiment in FIG. 39, the present invention isnot limited thereto, and various differential pulleys and differentialgears may be used in the present embodiment.

Hereinafter, the operator 610 of the surgical instrument 600 accordingto the sixth embodiment of the present invention will be described inmore detail.

Referring to FIG. 39, the operator 610 of the surgical instrument 600according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention includes apitch operator 611 controlling a pitch motion of the end tool 620, afirst jaw operator 612 controlling a motion of the first jaw 621 of theend tool 620, and a second jaw operator 613 controlling a motion of thesecond jaw 622 of the end tool 620.

The pitch operator 611 includes a pitch operating axis 6111, a pitchoperating bar 6112, and a pitch operating pulley 6113. Herein, the pitchoperating axis 6111 may be formed in the direction parallel to the Yaxis, and the pitch operating bar 6112 may be connected with the pitchoperating axis 6111 to rotate along with the pitch operating axis 6111.For example, when the user grips and rotates the pitch operating bar6112, the pitch operating axis 6111 connected with the pitch operatingbar 6112 and the pitch operating pulley 6113 connected therewith rotatetogether therewith. Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted tothe end tool 620 through the operating force transmitter 630, so thatthe end tool 620 rotates in the same direction as the rotation directionof the pitch operating axis 6111. That is, when the pitch operator 611rotates in the clockwise direction around the pitch operating axis 6111,the end tool 620 also rotates in the clockwise direction around a pitchpulley operating axis (not illustrated), and when the pitch operator 611rotates in the counterclockwise direction around the pitch operatingaxis 6111, the end tool 620 also rotates in the counterclockwisedirection around the pitch pulley operating axis. The pitch operatingpulley 6113 is integrated with the pitch operating axis 6111 to rotatealong with the pitch operating axis 6111.

The first jaw operator 612 includes a first jaw operating axis, a firstjaw operating bar 6122, and a first jaw operating pulley 6123. Althoughit is illustrated that the first jaw operating axis is formed to extendfrom the pitch operating bar 6112 and the pitch operating bar 6112 isinserted into the first jaw operating pulley 6123, the present inventionis not limited thereto. For example, the pitch operating bar 6112 andthe first jaw operating axis may be formed as separate members ondifferent axes. In this case, the first jaw operating axis may be formedin various directions by ergonomic design according to the structure ofthe hand of the user gripping the operator 610.

A first jaw operating wire 635J1 and a first additional jaw operatingwire 635J1′ may be connected to the first jaw operating pulley 6123. Inthis case, any one of the first jaw operating wire 635J1 and the firstadditional jaw operating wire 635J1′ may be twisted one time such thatthe rotating force transmission directions of the first jaw operatingwire 635J1 and the first additional jaw operating wire 635J1′ areopposite to each other. The first jaw operating bar 6122 and the firstjaw operating pulley 6123 are formed to rotate around the first jawoperating axis. For example, when the user holds and rotates the firstjaw operating bar 6122 with the thumb finger, the first jaw operatingpulley 6123 connected with the first jaw operating bar 6122 rotatesaround the first jaw operating axis. Then, the resulting rotating forceis transmitted to the end tool 620 through the operating forcetransmitter 630, so that the first jaw 621 of the end tool 620horizontally rotate in the same direction as the rotation direction ofthe first jaw operating pulley 6123.

The second jaw operator 613 includes a second jaw operating axis, asecond jaw operating bar 6132, and a second jaw operating pulley 6133.Although it is illustrated that the second jaw operating axis is formedto extend from the pitch operating bar 6112 and the pitch operating bar6112 is inserted into the second jaw operating pulley 6133, the presentinvention is not limited thereto. For example, the pitch operating bar6112 and the second jaw operating axis may be formed as separate memberson different axes. In this case, the second jaw operating axis may beformed in various directions by ergonomic design according to thestructure of the hand of the user gripping the operator 610.

A second jaw operating wire 635J2 may be connected to the second jawoperating pulley 6133. The second jaw operating bar 6132 and the secondjaw operating pulley 6133 are formed to rotate around the second jawoperating axis. For example, when the user holds and rotates the secondjaw operating bar 6132 with the index finger, the second jaw operatingpulley 6133 connected with the second jaw operating bar 6132 rotatesaround the second jaw operating axis. Then, the resulting rotating forceis transmitted to the end tool 620 through the operating forcetransmitter 630, so that the second jaw 622 of the end tool 620horizontally rotates in the same direction as the rotation direction ofthe second jaw operating pulley 6133.

The pitch operating axis 6111 is inserted into a first second jaw-pitch(J2P) pulley 614 a, a first first jaw-pitch (J1P) pulley 615 a, and afirst J1P additional pulley 616 a such that the first J2P pulley 614 a,the first J1P pulley 615 a, and the first J1P additional pulley 616 amay rotate around the pitch operating axis 6111.

The first J2P pulley 614 a and a second J2P pulley 614 b connectedtherewith rotate along with the second jaw operating pulley 6133 whenthe second jaw operating pulley 6133 rotates, and rotate along with thepitch operating pulley 6113 when the pitch operating bar 6112, and thefirst operator 612 and the second operator 613 connected therewithrotate around the pitch operating axis 6111. That is, the first J2Ppulley 614 a and the second J2P pulley 614 b may be considered aspulleys that reflect the rotations of the second jaw operating bar 6132and the rotation of the pitch operating bar 6112 together.

In detail, when the second jaw operating bar 6132 rotates, the secondjaw operating pulley 6133 connected with the second jaw operating bar6132 rotates along with the second jaw operating bar 6132, and thus thesecond jaw operating wire 635J2 connected therewith moves to rotate thefirst J2P pulley 614 a and the second J2P pulley 614 b connectedtherewith. When the pitch operating axis 6111 and the pitch operatingbar 6112 rotate in the direction of an arrow P of FIG. 39, the secondjaw operating axis and the second jaw operating pulley 6133 also rotatearound the pitch operating axis 6111. Then, the second jaw operatingwire 635J2 rotates around the pitch operating axis 6111 in the directionof the arrow P of FIG. 39 according to the rotation of the operator 610,and the first J2P pulley 614 a connected therewith also rotatesaccordingly. Consequently, the first J2P pulley 614 a and the second J2Ppulley 614 b rotate when the second jaw operating pulley 6132 rotates,and rotate when the pitch operating bar 6112 rotates. This means that asecond jaw operation input and a pitch operation input are addedtogether by the first J2P pulley 614 a and the second J2P pulley 614 bof the operator 610 to output the sum of the second jaw operation inputand the pitch operation input.

The first J1P pulley 615 a and a second J1P pulley 615 b connectedtherewith rotate along with the first jaw operating pulley 6123 when thefirst jaw operating bar 6122 rotates, and rotate along with the pitchoperating pulley 6113 when the pitch operating bar 6112, and the firstoperator 612 and the second operator 613 connected therewith rotatearound the pitch operating axis 6111. That is, the first J1P pulley 615a and the second J1P pulley 615 b may be considered as pulleys thatreflect the rotations of the first jaw operating bar 6122 and therotation of the pitch operating bar 6112 together.

Likewise, the first J1P additional pulley 616 a and a second J1Padditional pulley 616 b connected therewith rotate along with the firstjaw operating pulley 6123 when the first jaw operating bar 6122 rotates,and rotate along with the pitch operating pulley 6113 when the pitchoperating bar 6112, and the first operator 612 and the second operator613 connected therewith rotate around the pitch operating axis 6111.That is, the first J1P additional pulley 616 a and the second J1Padditional pulley 616 b may be considered as pulleys that reflect therotation of the first jaw operating bar 6122 and the rotation of thepitch operating bar 6112 together.

Herein, the rotation directions of the first J1P pulley 615 a and thefirst J1P additional pulley 616 a are opposite to each other. This isbecause unlike the first jaw operating wire 635J1 connecting the firstjaw operating pulley 6123 and the first J1P pulley 615 a, the firstadditional jaw operating wire 635J1′ connecting the first jaw operatingpulley 6123 and the first J1P additional pulley 616 a is twisted onetime. That is, since the rotating force transmission directions of thefirst jaw operating wire 635J1 and the first additional jaw operatingwire 635J1′ are opposite to each other, the rotation directions of thefirst J1P pulley 615 a and the first J1P additional pulley 616 a areopposite to each other.

Although it is illustrated that the first J2P pulley 614 a is connectedto the second J2P pulley 614 b, and the second J2P pulley 614 b isconnected to a first input unit 6311 of the first differential member631 and a second input unit 6322 of the second differential member 632,this is merely for convenience of description, and the first J2P pulley614 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 6311 of thefirst differential member 631 and the second input unit 6322 of thesecond differential member 632, without using the second J2P pulley 614b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the first J1P pulley 615 a isconnected to the second J1P pulley 615 b, and the second J1P pulley 615b is connected to a first input unit 6321 of the second differentialmember 632, this is merely for convenience of description, and the firstJ1P pulley 615 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 6321of the second differential member 632, without using the second J1Ppulley 615 b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the first J1P additionalpulley 616 a is connected to the second J1P additional pulley 616 b, andthe second J1P additional pulley 616 b is connected to a second inputunit 6312 of the first differential member 631, this is merely forconvenience of description, and the first J1P additional pulley 616 amay be directly connected to the second input unit 6312 of the firstdifferential member 631, without using the second J1P additional pulley616 b.

Overall Operation of Sixth Embodiment

Hereinafter, an overall configuration for the pitch operation, the yawoperation, and the actuation operation of the surgical instrument 600according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention will besummarized with reference to the above descriptions.

In the surgical instrument 600 according to the sixth embodiment of thepresent invention, the first differential member 631 includes the firstinput unit 6311, the second input unit 6312, an output unit 6313, afirst differential control member 6314, a second differential controlmember 6315, and a differential control wire 6316, and the seconddifferential member 632 includes the first input unit 6321, the secondinput unit 6322, an output unit 6323, a first differential controlmember 6324, a second differential control member 6325, and adifferential control wire 6326.

In detail, for the configuration of the end tool 620 of the presentembodiment, the operating force transmitter 630 capable of dividing theoperation input of the operator 610 into a pitch operation, a yawoperation, and an actuation operation is necessary to perform the pitch,yaw, and actuation operations of the end tool 620. The pitch operator611 includes the first jaw operator 612 and the second jaw operator 613,and divides the operation inputs thereof into a pitch operationcomponent, a yaw operation component, and an actuation operationcomponent. The rotation operation of the pitch operating bar may bedirectly connected to the pitch operation of the end tool. However, theyaw and actuation operations of the end tool 620 reconstructs theoperation inputs of the first jaw and the second jaw. This may beexpressed as the following equation:Y=J1+J2(two jaws rotate in the same direction in the yaw operation)A=J1−J2(two jaws rotate in opposite directions in the actuationoperation)

To this end, the operation inputs of the two jaws are connected to thefirst J1P pulley 615 a and the first J2P pulley 614 a, and the first J1Padditional pulley 616 a is provided to transmit the operation input ofthe first jaw reversely. This may be expressed as the followingequation:J1_(P) =J1+PJ1_(P2) =−J1+PJ2_(P) =J2+P

(where J1 _(P) denotes the rotation of the J1 _(P) pulley, J1 _(P2)denotes the rotation of the J1P additional pulley, J2 _(P) denotes therotation of the J2 _(P) pulley, J1 denotes the rotation of the first jawoperating pulley, J2 denotes the rotation of the second jaw operatingpulley, and P denotes the rotation of the pitch operating pulley.)

Thus, in order to transmit the output of the operator 610 as only the Yand A components to the end tool 620, the operating force transmitter630 extracts the following components:Y=J1+J2=J2_(P) −J1_(P2)A=J1−J2=J1_(P) −J2_(P)

To this end, the operating force transmitter 630 includes a differentialpulley that receives an input of J2 _(P) and J1 _(P2) and outputs onlythe difference (Y component) between J2 _(P) and J1 _(P2), and adifferential pulley that receives an input of J1 _(P) and J2 _(P) andoutputs only the difference (A component) between J1 _(P) and J2 _(P).

The first input unit 6311 of the first differential member 631 isconnected with the first J2P pulley 614 a (or the second J2P pulley 614b connected therewith) to rotate when the second jaw operating pulley6133 rotates and also rotate when the pitch operating pulley 6113rotates. The second input unit 6312 of the first differential member 631is connected with the first J1P additional pulley 616 a (or the secondJ1P additional pulley 616 b connected therewith) to rotate when thefirst jaw operating pulley 6123 rotates and also rotate when the pitchoperating pulley 6113 rotates. Also, the output unit 6313 of the firstdifferential member 631 is connected with the yaw wire 635Y to controlthe yaw operation of the end tool 620.

The first input unit 6321 of the second differential member 632 isconnected with the first J1P pulley 615 a (or the second J1P pulley 615b connected therewith) to rotate when the first jaw operating pulley6123 rotates and also rotate when the pitch operating pulley 6113rotates. The second input unit 6322 of the second differential member632 is connected with the first J2P pulley 614 a (or the second J2Ppulley 614 b connected therewith) to rotate when the second jawoperating pulley 6133 rotates and also rotate when the pitch operatingpulley 6113 rotates. Also, the output unit 6323 of the seconddifferential member 632 is connected with the actuation wire 635A tocontrol the actuation operation of the end tool 620.

The pitch operating pulley 6113 is connected with the pitch wire 635P tocontrol the pitch operation of the end tool 620.

First, the pitch operation will be described below.

As described above, when the user grips the pitch operating bar 6112 ofthe pitch operator 611 of the operator 610 and rotates the pitchoperating bar 6112 around the pitch operating axis 6111 in the directionof an arrow P of FIG. 39, the pitch operating pulley 6113 rotates alongwith the pitch operating axis 6111. Then, the pitch pulley 623 connectedwith the pitch operating pulley 6113 by the pitch wire 635P, the yawpulley 624 connected therewith, the first jaw 621, and the second jaw622 rotate around the pitch rotating axis 420PX (see FIG. 32) to performa pitch operation.

In this case, the pitch operation does not affect the first and seconddifferential pulleys 631 and 632 of the operating force transmitter 630which determine the yaw and actuation operations of the end tool 620. Inmore detail, when the first J2P pulley 614 a, the first J1P pulley 615a, and the first J1P additional pulley 616 a rotate around the pitchoperating axis 6111 according to the pitch operation, the first inputunit 6311 of the first differential member 631 that is connected withthe second J2P pulley 614 b and the second input unit 6312 of the firstdifferential member 631 that is connected with the second J1P additionalpulley 616 b rotate; however, since the rotations are offset in thefirst differential member 631, the output unit 6313 of the firstdifferential member 631 does not rotate. Likewise, the first input unit6321 of the second differential member 632 that is connected with thesecond J1P pulley 615 b and the second input unit 6322 of the seconddifferential member 632 that is connected with the second J2P pulley 614b rotate; however, since the rotations are offset in the seconddifferential member 632, the output unit 6323 of the second differentialmember 632 does not rotate. Thus, the pitch operation may be performedindependently of the yaw operation and the actuation operation.

The yaw operation and the actuation operation of the present embodimentwill be described below.

For a yaw operation, the user holds and rotates the first jaw operatingbar 6122 with the thumb finger in the direction of an arrow J1 of FIG.39, and holds and rotates the second jaw operating bar 6132 with theindex finger in the direction of an arrow J2 of FIG. 39 (that is,rotates the first jaw operating bar 6122 and the second jaw operatingbar 6132 in the same direction). For an actuation operation, the userrotates the first jaw operating bar 6122 in a direction opposite to thedirection of the arrow J1 of FIG. 39, and rotates the second jawoperating bar 6132 in the direction of the arrow J2 of FIG. 39 (that is,rotates the first jaw operating bar 6122 and the second jaw operatingbar 6132 in opposite directions).

Then, the first jaw operating pulley 6123 connected with the first jawoperating bar 6122 rotates around the first jaw operating axis (i.e.,the pitch operating bar), and the resulting rotating force istransmitted through the first jaw operating wire 635J1 to the first J1Ppulley 615 a and the second J1P pulley 615 b connected therewith, torotate the second J1P pulley 615 b. When the second J1P pulley 615 brotates, the first input unit 6321 of the second differential member 632connected therewith and the output unit 6323 of the second differentialmember 632 connected therewith rotate. In addition, the rotating forceof the first jaw operating pulley 6123 is transmitted through the firstadditional jaw operating wire 635J1′ to the first J1P additional pulley616 a and the second J1P additional pulley 616 b connected therewith, torotate the second J1P additional pulley 616 b. When the second J1Padditional pulley 616 b rotates, the second input unit 6312 of the firstdifferential member 631 connected therewith and the output unit 6313 ofthe first differential member 631 connected therewith rotate.

At the same time, the second jaw operating pulley 6133 connected withthe second jaw operating bar 6132 rotates around the second jawoperating axis (i.e., the pitch operating bar), and the resultingrotating force is transmitted through the second jaw operating wire635J2 to the first J2P pulley 614 a and the second J2P pulley 614 bconnected therewith, to rotate the second J2P pulley 614 b. When thesecond J2P pulley 614 b rotates, the first input unit 6311 of the firstdifferential member 631 connected therewith and the output unit 6313 ofthe first differential member 631 connected therewith rotate. Inaddition, when the second J2P pulley 614 b rotates, the second inputunit 6322 of the second differential member 632 connected therewith andthe output unit 6323 of the second differential member 632 connectedtherewith rotate.

As described above, the first J2P pulley 614 a and the second J2P pulley614 b connected therewith rotate along with the second jaw operatingpulley 6133 when the second jaw operating pulley 6133 rotates, androtate along with the pitch operating pulley 6113 when the pitchoperating pulley 6113 rotates. The first J1P pulley 615 a and the secondJ1P pulley 615 b connected therewith rotate along with the first jawoperating pulley 6123 when the first jaw operating pulley 6123 rotates,and rotate along with the pitch operating pulley 6113 when the pitchoperating pulley 6113 rotates. Likewise, the first J1P additional pulley616 a and the second J1P additional pulley 616 b connected therewithrotate along with the first jaw operating pulley 6123 when the first jawoperating pulley 6123 rotates, and rotate along with the pitch operatingpulley 6113 when the pitch operating pulley 6113 rotates.

Consequently, when the second J2P pulley 614 b and the second J1Padditional pulley 616 b are connected respectively to the two inputunits of the first differential member 631, only a pure yaw operationcontrol component may be extracted from the rotation of the pitchoperating pulley 6113, the rotation of the first jaw operating pulley6123, and the rotation of the second jaw operating pulley 6133.

Likewise, when the second J1P pulley 615 b and the second J2P additionalpulley 614 b are connected respectively to the two input units of thesecond differential member 632, only a pure actuation operation controlcomponent may be extracted from the rotation of the pitch operatingpulley 6113, the rotation of the first jaw operating pulley 6123, andthe rotation of the second jaw operating pulley 6133.

Consequently, for a yaw operation, when the first jaw operating bar 6122is rotated in the direction of the arrow J1 of FIG. 39 and the secondjaw operating bar 6132 is rotated in the direction of the arrow J2 ofFIG. 39, the first J2P pulley 614 a and the second J2P pulley 614 bconnected therewith rotate in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 39,the first J1P pulley 615 a and the second J1P pulley 615 b connectedtherewith rotate in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 39, and thefirst J1P additional pulley 616 a and the second J1P additional pulley616 b rotate in the clockwise direction in FIG. 39. Also, the firstinput unit 6311 of the first differential member 631 that is connectedwith the second J2P pulley 614 b rotates in the counterclockwisedirection, and the second input unit 6312 of the first differentialmember 631 that is connected with the second J1P additional pulley 616 brotates in the clockwise direction. Accordingly, the output unit 6313 ofthe first differential member 631 rotates in the counterclockwisedirection, and the yaw wire 635Y connected with the output unit 6313,the yaw pulley 624 connected with the yaw wire 635Y, and the first andsecond jaws 621 and 622 connected with the yaw pulley 624 rotate aroundthe yaw rotating axis 420YX (see FIG. 32) to perform a yaw operation.

Likewise, for an actuation operation, when the first jaw operating bar6122 is rotated in a direction opposite to the direction of the arrow J1of FIG. 39 and the second jaw operating bar 6132 is rotated in thedirection of the arrow J2 of FIG. 39, the first J2P pulley 614 a and thesecond J2P pulley 614 b connected therewith rotate in thecounterclockwise direction in FIG. 39, the first J1P pulley 615 a andthe second J1P pulley 615 b connected therewith rotate in the clockwisedirection in FIG. 39, and the first J1P additional pulley 616 a and thesecond J1P additional pulley 616 b rotate in the counterclockwisedirection in FIG. 39. Also, the first input unit 6321 of the seconddifferential member 632 that is connected with the second J1P pulley 615b rotates in the clockwise direction, and the second input unit 6322 ofthe second differential member 632 that is connected with the second J2Ppulley 614 b rotates in the counterclockwise direction. Accordingly, theoutput unit 6323 of the second differential member 632 rotates in theclockwise direction, the actuation wire 635A connected to the outputunit 6313 moves linearly in the direction of an arrow A of FIG. 39, andthe actuation axis 420AX (see FIG. 32) connected with the actuation wire635A translates, to perform an actuation operation of the first jaw 621and the second jaw 622.

Thus, according to the present invention, the yaw operation and theactuation operation of the end tool may be extracted from the rotationof the first jaw operating pulley 6123 and the rotation of the secondjaw operating pulley 6133.

Thus, as described above, the pitch, first jaw, and second jawoperations of the operator are independently divided into the pitch,yaw, and actuation operations of the end tool. Also, even when thepitch, first jaw, and second jaw operations of the operator occursimultaneously or not, the pitch, yaw, and actuation operations of theoperator may be independently divided into the pitch, yaw, and actuationoperations of the end tool.

Any combination of various configurations of the operator described withreference to FIG. 3A, various configurations of the operating forcetransmitter described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 15 to 27, andvarious modifications described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14 may beapplied to the surgical instrument 600 according to the sixth embodimentof the present invention.

<End Tools of Seventh to Ninth Embodiments of Surgical Instrument> (E2)

Hereinafter, surgical instruments 700, 800, and 900 according toseventh, eighth, and ninth embodiments of the present invention will bedescribed. The surgical instruments 700, 800, and 900 according to theseventh, eighth, and ninth embodiments of the present invention aresubstantially identical to the surgical instruments 100, 200, and 300according to the first, second, and third embodiments of the presentinvention and are different from the surgical instruments 100, 200, and300 according to the first, second, and third embodiments of the presentinvention in terms of the configuration of an end tool. Thus, theconfiguration of the end tool applied in common to the seventh, eighth,and ninth embodiments will be described first.

FIGS. 40 to 43 are schematic views illustrating an end tool included ina surgical instrument 700 according to a seventh embodiment of thepresent invention. FIG. 40 is an XZ-plane side view of the end tool,FIG. 41 is an XY-plane plan view of the end tool, FIG. 42 is a plan viewillustrating a yaw motion of the end tool of FIG. 41, and FIG. 43 is aplan view illustrating an actuation motion of the end tool of FIG. 41.Although FIGS. 41 to 43 schematically illustrate that the first jaw andthe second jaw rotate around different axes, the present invention isnot limited thereto, and the first jaw and the second jaw may rotatearound the same axis.

Referring to FIGS. 40 to 43, an end tool 720 included in the surgicalinstrument 700 according to the seventh embodiment of the presentinvention includes a first jaw 721, a second jaw 722, a pitch pulley723, a first jaw pulley 724, and a second jaw pulley 725. An operatingforce transmitter 730 included in the surgical instrument 700 accordingto the seventh embodiment of the present invention includes a pitch wire735P, a first jaw wire 735J1, and a second jaw wire 735J2.

In the present embodiments, a pitch operation is performed by therotation of the pitch wire wound around the pitch pulley, the two jawwires are formed to intersect the pitch pulley and extend toward the endtool, and the two jaw wires are wound around their respective jawpulleys to perform rotation operations for the yaw and actuationoperations of their respective jaws. Since the jaw wires are formed tointersect the pitch pulley, the jaw wires are minimally affected by therotation of the pitch pulley according to the pitch operation.

In detail, at one end portion of a connector (not illustrated), thepitch pulley 723 is formed to rotate around a pitch rotating axis 720PXwith respect to the connector. Also, on one side of the pitch pulley723, the first jaw pulley 724 and the second jaw pulley 725 are formedaround a jaw rotating axis 720JX. Thus, the pitch pulley 723 may rotatearound the pitch rotating axis 720PX, and the first jaw pulley 724 andthe second jaw pulley 725 coupled therewith rotate along with the pitchpulley 723.

The first jaw 721 is coupled with the first jaw pulley 724 to rotatealong with the first jaw pulley 724, and the second jaw 722 is coupledwith the second jaw pulley 725 to rotate along with the second jawpulley 725.

In the end tool 720 of the surgical instrument 700 according to theseventh embodiment of the present invention, the pulley/wire for a pitchoperation, the pulley/wire for an operation of the first jaw, and thepulley/wire for an operation of the second jaw are separately formedsuch that one operation does not affect other operations. This will bedescribed below in more detail.

First, the pitch operation of the present embodiment will be describedbelow.

The pitch wire 735P of the operating force transmitter 730 for a pitchoperation of the end tool 720 connects a pitch operator (notillustrated) of an operator (not illustrated) and the pitch pulley 723of the end tool 720. Thus, when the pitch operator rotates around apitch operating axis (not illustrated) in the counterclockwise directionin FIG. 40, the pitch wire 735P connected therewith moves in thedirection of an arrow P2 of FIG. 40. Accordingly, the pitch pulley 723connected with the pitch wire 735P, the first jaw pulley 724 connectedtherewith, the first jaw 721, and the second jaw 722 rotate around thepitch rotating axis 720PX in the direction of an arrow P of FIG. 40 toperform a pitch operation. On the other hand, when the pitch operatorrotates around the pitch operating axis in the clockwise direction inFIG. 40, the pitch wire 735P connected therewith moves in the directionof an arrow P1 of FIG. 40. Accordingly, the pitch pulley 723 connectedwith the pitch wire 735P, the first jaw pulley 724 connected therewith,the first jaw 721, and the second jaw 722 rotate around the pitchrotating axis 720PX in a direction opposite to the direction of thearrow P of FIG. 40 to perform a pitch operation.

The yaw operation and the actuation operation of the present embodimentwill be described below.

The first jaw wire 735J1 of the operating force transmitter 730 for theoperation of the first jaw 721 of the end tool 720 connects a yawoperator (not illustrated), an actuation operator (not illustrated), ora first jaw operator (not illustrated) of an operator (not illustrated)and the first jaw pulley 724 of the end tool 720. Accordingly, when theyaw operator, the actuation operator, or the first jaw operator of theoperator rotates, the first jaw wire 735J1 connected therewith, thefirst jaw pulley 724 connected therewith, and the first jaw 721 rotatearound the jaw rotating axis 720JX.

The second jaw wire 735J2 of the operating force transmitter 730 for theoperation of the second jaw 722 of the end tool 720 connects a yawoperator (not illustrated), an actuation operator (not illustrated), ora second jaw operator (not illustrated) of an operator (not illustrated)and the second jaw pulley 725 of the end tool 720. Accordingly, when theyaw operator, the actuation operator, or the second jaw operator of theoperator rotates, the second jaw wire 735J2 connected therewith, thesecond jaw pulley 725 connected therewith, and the second jaw 722 rotatearound the jaw rotating axis 720JX.

As illustrated in FIG. 42, when the first jaw pulley 724 and the secondjaw pulley 725 rotate around the jaw rotating axis 720JX in the samedirection, a yaw operation is performed. As illustrated in FIG. 43, whenthe first jaw pulley 724 and the second jaw pulley 725 rotate around thejaw rotating axis 720JX in opposite directions, an actuation operationis performed.

<Seventh Embodiment of Surgical Instrument> (E2+H1+D)

Hereinafter, the surgical instrument 700 according to the seventhembodiment of the present invention will be described. In the surgicalinstrument 700 according to the seventh embodiment of the presentinvention, the end tool 720 has the configuration described withreference to FIGS. 40 to 43, and an operator 710 has a yaw operator andan actuation operator formed independently of each other as in thesurgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment of the presentinvention (illustrated in FIG. 2), so that a rotation of a yaw operatingaxis and a rotation of an actuation operating axis are performedindependently of each other.

FIG. 44 is a view illustrating the surgical instrument 700 according tothe seventh embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 44,the surgical instrument 700 according to the seventh embodiment of thepresent invention includes the operator 710, the end tool 720, anoperating force transmitter 730, and a connector (not illustrated).

The end tool 720 includes the first jaw 721, the second jaw 722, thepitch pulley 723, the first jaw pulley 724, and the second jaw pulley725, and the operating force transmitter 730 includes the pitch wire735P, the first jaw wire 735J1, and the second jaw wire 735J2. In theend tool 720, the pulley/wire for a pitch operation, the pulley/wire foran operation of the first jaw, and the pulley/wire for an operation ofthe second jaw are separately formed such that one operation does notaffect other operations. The end tool 720 is the same as described abovewith reference to FIGS. 40 to 43 and thus a detailed description thereofwill be omitted herein.

The operating force transmitter 730 includes a first differential member731 and a second differential member 732. The first differential member731 and the second differential member 732 each include two or moreinput units and one input unit, receive an input of rotating forces fromthe two or more input units, extract a desired rotating force from thesum of (or the difference between) the input rotating forces, and outputthe desired rotating force through the output unit. The first and seconddifferential members 731 and 732 may include various differentialpulleys and differential gears, such as, the differential pulley of thesurgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment illustrated inFIGS. 4A and 4B, the first modification of the differential pulleyillustrated in FIG. 15, the second modification of the differentialpulley illustrated in FIG. 18, and the third modification of thedifferential pulley illustrated in FIG. 22. That is, although thedifferential pulley of FIG. 21E is illustrated as the first and seconddifferential members 731 and 732 of the surgical instrument 700according to the seventh embodiment in FIG. 44, the present invention isnot limited thereto, and various differential pulleys and differentialgears may be used in the present embodiment.

Hereinafter, the operator 710 of the surgical instrument 700 accordingto the seventh embodiment of the present invention will be described inmore detail.

Referring to FIG. 44, the operator 710 of the surgical instrument 700according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention includes apitch operator 711 controlling a pitch motion of the end tool 720, a yawoperator 712 controlling a yaw motion of the end tool 720, and anactuation operator 713 controlling an actuation motion of the end tool720.

The pitch operator 711 includes a pitch operating axis 7111, a pitchoperating bar 7112, and a pitch operating pulley 7113. Herein, the pitchoperating axis 7111 may be formed in a direction parallel to the Y axis,and the pitch operating bar 7112 may be connected with the pitchoperating axis 7111 to rotate along with the pitch operating axis 7111.For example, when the user grips and rotates the pitch operating bar7112, the pitch operating axis 7111 connected with the pitch operatingbar 7112 and the pitch operating pulley 7113 connected therewith rotatetogether. Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted to the endtool 720 through the operating force transmitter 730, so that the endtool 720 rotates in the same direction as the rotation direction of thepitch operating axis 7111. That is, when the pitch operator 711 rotatesin the clockwise direction around the pitch operating axis 7111, the endtool 720 also rotates in the clockwise direction around a pitch pulleyoperating axis (not illustrated), and when the pitch operator 711rotates in the counterclockwise direction around the pitch operatingaxis 7111, the end tool 720 also rotates in the counterclockwisedirection around the pitch pulley operating axis. The pitch operatingpulley 7113 is integrated with the pitch operating axis 7111 to rotatealong with the pitch operating axis 7111.

The yaw operator 712 includes a yaw operating axis, a yaw operating bar7122, and a yaw operating pulley 7123. Although it is illustrated thatthe yaw operating axis is formed to extend from the pitch operating bar7112 and the pitch operating bar 7112 is inserted into the yaw operatingpulley 7123, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example,the pitch operating bar 7112 and the yaw operating axis may be formed asseparate members on different axes. In this case, the yaw operating axismay be formed in various directions by ergonomic design according to thestructure of the hand of the user gripping the operator 710.

A yaw operating wire 735Y may be connected to the yaw operating pulley7123. The yaw operating bar 7122 and the yaw operating pulley 7123 areformed to rotate around the yaw operating axis. For example, when theuser holds and rotates the yaw operating bar 7122 with the index finger,the yaw operating pulley 7123 connected with the yaw operating bar 7122rotates around the yaw operating axis. Then, the resulting rotatingforce is transmitted to the end tool 720 through the operating forcetransmitter 730, so that the first and second jaws 721 and 722 of theend tool 720 horizontally rotate in the same direction as the rotationdirection of the yaw operating pulley 7123.

The actuation operator 713 includes an actuation operating axis, anactuation operating bar 7132, and an actuation operating pulley 7133.Herein, the actuation operating axis may be formed to extend from thepitch operating bar 7112, and may be formed in various directions byergonomic design according to the structure of the hand of the usergripping the operator 710. An actuation operating wire 735A and anactuation additional operating wire 735A′ may be connected to theactuation operating pulley 7133. In this case, any one of the actuationoperating wire 735A and the actuation additional operating wire 735A′may be twisted one time such that the rotating force transmissiondirections of the actuation operating wire 735A and the actuationadditional operating wire 735A′ are opposite to each other. Theactuation operating axis is formed to extend from the pitch operatingbar 7112 and may be formed in the direction parallel to the Z axis or invarious directions by ergonomic design according to the structure of thehand of the user gripping the operator 710. The actuation operating bar7132 and the actuation operating pulley 7133 are formed to rotate aroundthe actuation operating axis. For example, when the user holds androtates the actuation operating bar 7132 with the thumb finger, theactuation operating pulley 7133 connected with the actuation operatingbar 7132 rotates around the actuation operating axis. Then, theresulting rotating force is transmitted to the end tool 720 through theoperating force transmitter 730, so that the first and second jaws 721and 722 of the end tool 720 perform an actuation operation.

The pitch operating axis 7111 is inserted into a first YP pulley 714 a,a first AP pulley 715 a, and a first AP additional pulley 716 a suchthat the first YP pulley 714 a, the first AP pulley 715 a, and the firstAP additional pulley 716 a may rotate around the pitch operating axis7111.

When the yaw operating pulley 7123 rotates, the first YP pulley 714 aand a second YP pulley 714 b connected therewith rotate along with theyaw operating pulley 7123; and when the pitch operating bar 7112 and theyaw operator 712 and the actuation operator 713 connected therewithrotate together around the pitch operating axis 7111, the first YPpulley 714 a and the second YP pulley 714 b connected therewith rotatealong with the pitch operating pulley 7113. That is, the first YP pulley714 a and the second YP pulley 714 b may be considered as pulleys thatreflect the rotations of the yaw operating bar 7122 and the rotation ofthe pitch operating bar 7112 together.

In detail, when the yaw operating bar 7122 rotates, the yaw operatingpulley 7123 connected with the yaw operating bar 7122 rotates along withthe yaw operating bar 7122, and thus the yaw operating wire 735Y movesto rotate the first YP pulley 714 a and the second YP pulley 714 bconnected therewith. When the pitch operating axis 7111 and the pitchoperating bar 7112 rotate in the direction of an arrow P of FIG. 44, theyaw operating axis and the yaw operating pulley 7123 also rotate aroundthe pitch operating axis 7111. Then, the yaw operating wire 735Y rotatesaround the pitch operating axis 7111 in the direction of the arrow P ofFIG. 44 according to the rotation of the operator 710, and the first YPpulley 714 a connected therewith also rotates accordingly. Consequently,the first YP pulley 714 a and the second YP pulley 714 b rotate when theyaw operating pulley 7123 rotates, and also rotate when the pitchoperating pulley 7113 rotates. This means that a yaw operation input anda pitch operation input are added together by the first YP pulley 714 aand the second YP pulley 714 b of the operator 710 to output the sum ofthe yaw operation input and the pitch operation input.

When the actuation operating bar 7132 rotates, the first AP pulley 715 aand a second AP pulley 715 b connected therewith rotate along with theactuation operating pulley 7133; and when the actuation operating bar7112 and the yaw operator 712 and the actuation operator 713 connectedtherewith rotate together around the pitch operating axis 7111, thefirst AP pulley 715 a and the second AP pulley 715 b connected therewithrotate along with the pitch operating pulley 7113. That is, the first APpulley 715 a and the second AP pulley 715 b may be considered as pulleysthat reflect the rotations of the actuation operating pulley 7133 andthe rotation of the pitch operating pulley 7113 together.

Likewise, when the actuation operating bar 7132 rotates, the first APadditional pulley 716 a and a second AP additional pulley 716 bconnected therewith rotate along with the actuation operating pulley7133; and when the pitch operating bar 7112 and the yaw operator 712 andthe actuation operator 713 connected therewith rotate together aroundthe pitch operating axis 7111, the first AP additional pulley 716 a andthe second AP additional pulley 716 b connected therewith rotate alongwith the pitch operating pulley 7113. That is, the first AP additionalpulley 716 a and the second AP additional pulley 716 b may be consideredas pulleys that reflect the rotations of the actuation operating bar7132 and the rotation of the pitch operating bar 7112 together.

Herein, the rotation directions of the first AP pulley 715 a and thefirst AP additional pulley 716 a are opposite to each other. This isbecause unlike the actuation operating wire 735A connecting theactuation operating pulley 7133 and the first AP pulley 715 a, theactuation additional operating wire 735A′ connecting the actuationoperating pulley 7133 and the first AP additional pulley 716 a istwisted one time. That is, since the rotating force transmissiondirections of the actuation operating wire 735A and the actuationadditional operating wire 735A′ are opposite to each other, the rotationdirections of the first AP pulley 715 a and the first AP additionalpulley 716 a are opposite to each other.

Although it is illustrated that the first YP pulley 714 a is connectedto the second YP pulley 714 b, and the second YP pulley 714 b isconnected to a first input unit 7311 of the first differential member731 and a first input unit 7321 of the second differential member 732,this is merely for convenience of description, and the first YP pulley714 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 7311 of thefirst differential member 731 and first input unit 7321 of the seconddifferential member 732, without using the second YP pulley 714 b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the first AP pulley 715 a isconnected to the second AP pulley 715 b, and the second AP pulley 715 bis connected to the first input unit 7321 of the second differentialmember 732, this is merely for convenience of description, and the firstAP pulley 715 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 7321of the second differential member 732, without using the second APpulley 715 b.

Also, although it is illustrated that the first AP additional pulley 716a is connected to the second AP additional pulley 716 b, and the secondAP additional pulley 716 b is connected to the first input unit 7311 ofthe first differential member 731, this is merely for convenience ofdescription, and the first AP additional pulley 716 a may be directlyconnected to the first input unit 7311 of the first differential member731, without using the second AP additional pulley 716 b.

Overall Operation of Seventh Embodiment

Hereinafter, an overall configuration for the pitch operation, the yawoperation, and the actuation operation of the surgical instrument 700according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention will besummarized with reference to the above descriptions.

In the surgical instrument 700 according to the seventh embodiment ofthe present invention, the first differential member 731 includes thefirst input unit 7311, a second input unit 7312, an output unit 7313, afirst differential control member 7314, a second differential controlmember 7315, and a differential control wire 7316, and the seconddifferential member 732 includes the first input unit 7321, a secondinput unit 7322, an output unit 7323, a first differential controlmember 7324, a second differential control member 7325, and adifferential control wire 7326.

For the configuration of the end tool 720 of the present embodiment, theoperating force transmitter 730 capable of dividing the operation inputof the operator 710 into a pitch operation, a first jaw operation, and asecond jaw operation is necessary to perform the pitch, yaw, andactuation operations of the end tool 720. The rotation operation of thepitch operating bar may be directly connected to the pitch operation ofthe end tool. However, since the end tool needs to include the operationcomponent of the first jaw and the operation component of the second jawbut the input of the operator is the yaw component and the actuationcomponent, the operation component of the first jaw and the operationcomponent of the second jaw have to include the yaw component and theactuation component as follows: This may be expressed as the followingequation:J1=Y+A(the first jaw rotates in the same direction in both the yawoperation and the actuation operation.)J2=Y−A(the second jaw rotates in the same direction in the yaw operationand rotates in an opposite direction in the actuation operation.)

To this end, the yaw operator 712 and the actuation operator 713 of theoperator 710 are connected to the first YP pulley 714 a and the first APpulley 715 a, and the first AP additional pulley 716 a is provided totransmit the actuation operation input reversely. This may be expressedas the following equation:Y _(P) =Y+PA _(P) =A+PA _(P′) =−A+P

Thus, in order to transmit the output of the operator 710 as only thecomponents of the first and second jaws to the end tool 720, theoperating force transmitter 730 extracts the following components:J1=Y+A=Y _(P) −A _(P′)J2=Y−A=Y _(P) −A _(P)

To this end, the operating force transmitter 730 includes a differentialpulley that receives an input of YP and AP′ and outputs only thedifference (J1 component) between YP and AP′, and a differential pulleythat receives an input of YP and AP and outputs only the difference (J2component) between YP and AP.

(where Y denotes the rotation of the yaw operating pulley, A denotes therotation of the actuation operating pulley, YP denotes the rotation ofthe YP pulley, AP denotes the rotation of the AP pulley, AP′ denotes therotation of the AP additional pulley, J1 denotes the rotation of thefirst jaw operating pulley, and J2 denotes the rotation of the secondjaw operating pulley.)

This will be described below in more detail.

The first input unit 7311 of the first differential member 731 isconnected with the first YP pulley 714 a (or the second YP pulley 714 bconnected therewith) to rotate when the yaw operating pulley 7123rotates and also rotate when the pitch operating pulley 7113 rotates.The second input unit 7312 of the first differential member 731 isconnected with the first AP additional pulley 716 a (or the second APadditional pulley 716 b connected therewith) to rotate when theactuation operating pulley 7133 rotates and also rotate when the pitchoperating pulley 7113 rotates. Also, the output unit 7313 of the firstdifferential member 731 is connected with the first jaw wire 735J1 tocontrol the operation of the first jaw 721 of the end tool 720.

The first input unit 7321 of the second differential member 732 isconnected with the first YP pulley 714 a (or the second YP pulley 714 bconnected therewith) to rotate when the yaw operating pulley 7123rotates and also rotate when the pitch operating pulley 7113 rotates.The second input unit 7322 of the second differential member 732 isconnected with the first AP pulley 715 a (or the second AP pulley 715 bconnected therewith) to rotate when the actuation operating pulley 7133rotates and also rotate when the pitch operating pulley 7113 rotates.Also, the output unit 7323 of the second differential member 732 isconnected with the second jaw wire 735J2 to control the operation of thesecond jaw 722 of the end tool 720.

The pitch operating pulley 7113 is connected with the pitch wire 735P tocontrol the pitch operation of the end tool 720.

First, the pitch operation will be described below.

As described above, when the user grips the pitch operating bar 7112 ofthe pitch operator 711 of the operator 710 and rotates the pitchoperating bar 7112 around the pitch operating axis 7111 in the directionof the arrow P of FIG. 44, the pitch operating pulley 7113 rotates alongwith the pitch operating axis 7111. Then, the pitch pulley 723 connectedwith the pitch operating pulley 7113 by the pitch wire 735P, the firstjaw pulley 724 connected therewith, the second jaw pulley 725, the firstjaw 721, and the second jaw 722 rotate around the pitch rotating axis720PX (see FIG. 40) to perform a pitch operation.

In this case, the pitch operation does not affect the output units ofthe first and second differential pulleys 731 and 732 of the operatingforce transmitter 730 which determine the operations of the first andsecond jaws 721 and 722 of the end tool 720. In more detail, when thefirst YP pulley 714 a, the first AP pulley 715 a, and the first APadditional pulley 716 a rotate around the pitch operating axis 7111according to the pitch operation, the first input unit 7311 of the firstdifferential member 731 that is connected with the second YP pulley 714b and the second input unit 7312 of the first differential member 731that is connected with the second AP additional pulley 716 b rotate;however, since the rotations are offset in the first differential member731, the output unit 7313 of the first differential member 731 does notrotate. Likewise, the first input unit 7321 of the second differentialmember 732 that is connected with the second YP pulley 714 b and thesecond input unit 7322 of the second differential member 732 that isconnected with the second AP pulley 715 b rotate; however, since therotations are offset in the second differential member 732, the outputunit 7323 of the second differential member 732 does not rotate. Thus,the pitch operation may be performed independently of the yaw operationand the actuation operation.

The yaw operation and the actuation operation of the present embodimentwill be described below.

For a yaw operation, the user holds the yaw operating bar 7122 with theindex finger and rotates the yaw operating bar 7122 in the direction ofan arrow Y of FIG. 44.

Then, the yaw operating pulley 7123 connected with the yaw operating bar7122 rotates around the yaw operating axis (i.e., the pitch operatingbar), and the resulting rotating force is transmitted through the yawoperating wire 735Y to the first YP pulley 714 a and the second YPpulley 714 b connected therewith, to rotate the second YP pulley 714 b.When the second YP pulley 714 b rotates, the first input unit 7311 ofthe first differential member 731 connected therewith and the outputunit 7313 of the first differential member 731 connected therewithrotate. In addition, when the second YP pulley 714 b rotates, the firstinput unit 7321 of the second differential member 732 connectedtherewith and the output unit 7323 of the second differential member 732connected therewith rotate.

For an actuation operation, the user holds the actuation operating bar7132 with the thumb finger and rotates the actuation operating bar 7132in the direction of an arrow A of FIG. 44.

Then, the actuation operating pulley 7133 connected with the actuationoperating bar 7132 rotates around the actuation operating axis (i.e.,the pitch operating bar), and the resulting rotating force istransmitted through the actuation operating wire 735A to the first APpulley 715 a and the second AP pulley 715 b connected therewith, torotate the second AP pulley 715 b. When the second AP pulley 715 brotates, the second input unit 7322 of the second differential member732 that is connected therewith and the output unit 7323 of the seconddifferential member 732 connected therewith rotate. In addition, therotating force of the actuation operating pulley 7133 is transmittedthrough the actuation additional operating wire 735A′ to the first APadditional pulley 716 a and the second AP additional pulley 716 bconnected therewith, to rotate the second AP additional pulley 716 b.When the second AP additional pulley 716 b rotates, the second inputunit 7312 of the first differential member 731 that is connectedtherewith and the output unit 7313 of the first differential member 731connected therewith rotate.

As described above, the second YP pulley 714 a and the second YP pulley714 b connected therewith rotate along with the yaw operating pulley7123 when the yaw operating pulley 7123 rotates, and rotate along withthe pitch operating pulley 7113 when the pitch operating pulley 7113rotates. The first AP pulley 715 a and the second AP pulley 715 bconnected therewith rotate along with the actuation operating pulley7133 when the actuation operating pulley 7133 rotates, and rotate alongwith the pitch operating pulley 7113 when the pitch operating pulley7113 rotates. Likewise, the first AP pulley 716 a and the second APpulley 716 b connected therewith rotate along with the actuationoperating pulley 7133 when the actuation operating pulley 7133 rotates,and rotate along with the pitch operating pulley 7113 when the pitchoperating pulley 7113 rotates.

Referring to the above equation, when the second YP pulley 714 b and thesecond AP additional pulley 716 b are connected respectively to the twoinput units of the first differential member 731, only a pure operationcontrol component of the first jaw 721 may be extracted from therotation of the pitch operating pulley 7113, the rotation of the yawoperating pulley 7123, and the rotation of the actuation operatingpulley 7133.

Likewise, when the second YP pulley 714 b and the second AP pulley 715 bare connected respectively to the two input units of the seconddifferential member 732, only a pure operation control component of thesecond jaw 722 may be extracted from the rotation of the pitch operatingpulley 7113, the rotation of the yaw operating pulley 7123, and therotation of the actuation operating pulley 7133.

Consequently, for a yaw operation, when the yaw operating bar 7122 isrotated in the direction of the arrow Y of FIG. 44, the first YP pulley714 a and the second YP pulley 714 b connected therewith rotate in thecounterclockwise direction in FIG. 44. Then, the first input unit 7311of the first differential member 731 that is connected with the secondYP pulley 714 b rotates in the counterclockwise direction. Accordingly,the output unit 7313 of the first differential member 731 rotates in thecounterclockwise direction, and the first jaw wire 735J1 connected withthe output unit 7313, the first jaw pulley 724 connected with the firstjaw wire 735J1, and the first jaw 721 connected with the first jawpulley 724 rotate around the jaw rotating axis 720JX (see FIG. 40) inthe counterclockwise direction. Likewise, the first input unit 7321 ofthe second differential member 732 that is connected with the second YPpulley 714 b rotates in the counterclockwise direction. Accordingly, theoutput unit 7323 of the second differential member 732 rotates in thecounterclockwise direction, and the second jaw wire 735J2 connected withthe output unit 7323, the second jaw pulley 725 connected with thesecond jaw wire 735J2, and the second jaw 722 connected with the secondjaw pulley 725 rotate around the jaw rotating axis 720JX (see FIG. 40)in the counterclockwise direction. In this manner, the first jaw 721 andthe second jaw 722 rotate in the same direction to perform a yawoperation.

Similarly, for an actuation operation, when the actuation operating bar7132 is rotated in the direction of the arrow A of FIG. 44, the first APpulley 715 a and the second AP pulley 715 b connected therewith rotatein the clockwise direction in FIG. 44, and the first AP additionalpulley 716 a and the second AP additional pulley 716 b rotate in thecounterclockwise direction in FIG. 44. Then, the second input unit 7322of the second differential member 732 that is connected with the secondAP pulley 715 b rotates in the clockwise direction. Accordingly, theoutput unit 7323 of the second differential member 732 rotates in thecounterclockwise direction, and the second jaw wire 735J2 connected withthe output unit 7323, the second jaw pulley 725 connected with thesecond jaw wire 735J2, and the second jaw 722 connected with the secondjaw pulley 725 rotate around the jaw rotating axis 720JX (see FIG. 40)in the counterclockwise direction. Likewise, the second input unit 7312of the first differential member 731 that is connected with the secondAP additional pulley 716 b rotates in the counterclockwise direction.Accordingly, the output unit 7313 of the first differential member 731rotates in the clockwise direction, and the first jaw wire 735J1connected with the output unit 7313, the first jaw pulley 724 connectedwith the first jaw wire 735J1, and the first jaw 721 connected with thefirst jaw pulley 724 rotate around the jaw rotating axis 720JX (see FIG.40) in the clockwise direction. In this manner, the first jaw 721 andthe second jaw 722 rotate in opposite directions to perform an actuationoperation.

Thus, according to the present invention, the pitch operation of the endtool, the rotation operation of the first jaw, and the rotationoperation of the second jaw may be extracted respectively from therotation of the pitch operating pulley 7113, the rotation of the yawoperating pulley 7123, and the rotation of the actuation operatingpulley 7133. Accordingly, even when the pitch, yaw, and actuationoperations of the operator occur simultaneously or not, the pitch, yaw,and actuation operations of the operator may be independently dividedinto the pitch operation component of the end tool, the rotationoperation component of the first jaw, and the rotation operationcomponent of the second jaw.

Any combination of various configurations of the operator described withreference to FIG. 3A, various configurations of the operating forcetransmitter described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 15 to 27, andvarious modifications described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14 may beapplied to the surgical instrument 700 according to the seventhembodiment of the present invention.

<Eighth Embodiment of Surgical Instrument> (E2+H2+D)

Hereinafter, the surgical instrument 800 according to the eighthembodiment of the present invention will be described. In the surgicalinstrument 800 according to the eighth embodiment of the presentinvention, an end tool 820 has the configuration described withreference to FIGS. 40 to 43, and an actuation operator formed is formedon an yaw operator such that the actuation operator rotates togetherwhen the yaw operator rotates, as in the surgical instrument 200according to the second embodiment illustrated in FIG. 28.

FIG. 45 is a view illustrating the surgical instrument 800 according tothe eighth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 45,the surgical instrument 800 according to the eighth embodiment of thepresent invention includes an operator 810, the end tool 820, anoperating force transmitter 830, and a connector (not illustrated).

The end tool 820 includes a first jaw 821, a second jaw 822, a pitchpulley 823, a first jaw pulley 824, and a second jaw pulley 825, and theoperating force transmitter 830 includes a pitch wire 835P, a first jawwire 835J1, and a second jaw wire 835J2. In the end tool 820, thepulley/wire for a pitch operation, the pulley/wire for an operation ofthe first jaw, and the pulley/wire for an operation of the second jaware separately formed such that one operation does not affect otheroperations. Since the end tool 820 is substantially identical to the endtool 720 described with reference to FIGS. 40 to 43, a detaileddescription thereof will be omitted herein.

The operating force transmitter 830 includes a first differential member831 and a second differential member 832. The first differential member831 and the second differential member 832 each include two or moreinput units and one input unit, receive an input of rotating forces fromthe two or more input units, extract a desired rotating force from thesum of (or the difference between) the input rotating forces, and outputthe desired rotating force through the output unit. The first and seconddifferential members 831 and 832 may include various differentialpulleys and differential gears, such as, the differential pulley of thesurgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment illustrated inFIGS. 4A and 4B, the first modification of the differential pulleyillustrated in FIG. 15, the second modification of the differentialpulley illustrated in FIG. 18, and the third modification of thedifferential pulley illustrated in FIG. 22. That is, although thedifferential pulley of FIG. 21E is illustrated as the first and seconddifferential members 831 and 832 of the surgical instrument 800according to the eighth embodiment in FIG. 44, the present invention isnot limited thereto, and various differential pulleys and differentialgears may be used in the present embodiment.

Hereinafter, the operator 810 of the surgical instrument 800 accordingto the eighth embodiment of the present invention will be described inmore detail.

Referring to FIG. 45, the operator 810 of the surgical instrument 800according to the eighth embodiment of the present invention includes apitch operator 811 controlling a pitch motion of the end tool 820, a yawoperator 812 controlling a yaw motion of the end tool 820, and anactuation operator 813 controlling an actuation motion of the end tool820.

The pitch operator 811 includes a pitch operating axis 8111, a pitchoperating bar 8112, and a pitch operating pulley 8113. Herein, the pitchoperating axis 8111 may be formed in the direction parallel to the Yaxis, and the pitch operating bar 8112 may be connected with the pitchoperating axis 8111 to rotate along with the pitch operating axis 8111.For example, when the user grips and rotates the pitch operating bar8112, the pitch operating axis 8111 connected with the pitch operatingbar 8112 and the pitch operating pulley 8113 connected therewith rotatetogether therewith. Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted tothe end tool 820 through the operating force transmitter 830, so thatthe end tool 820 rotates in the same direction as the rotation directionof the pitch operating axis 8111. That is, when the pitch operator 811rotates in the clockwise direction around the pitch operating axis 8111,the end tool 820 also rotates in the clockwise direction around a pitchpulley operating axis (not illustrated), and when the pitch operator 811rotates in the counterclockwise direction around the pitch operatingaxis 8111, the end tool 820 also rotates in the counterclockwisedirection around the pitch pulley operating axis. The pitch operatingpulley 8113 is integrated with the pitch operating axis 8111 to rotatealong with the pitch operating axis 8111.

The yaw operator 812 includes a yaw operating axis 8121 and a yawoperating bar 8122. Although it is illustrated that the yaw operatingaxis 8121 is formed to extend from the pitch operating bar 8112, thepresent invention is not limited thereto. For example, the pitchoperating bar 8112 and the yaw operating axis 8121 may be formed asseparate members on different axes. In this case, the yaw operating axis8121 may be formed in various directions by ergonomic design accordingto the structure of the hand of the user gripping the operator 810.

When the pitch operator 811 rotates, a coordinate system of the yawoperator 812 may change relatively. The yaw operating bar 8122 is formedto rotate around the yaw operating axis 8121. For example, when the userholds and rotates the yaw operating bar 8122 with the index finger, theyaw operating bar 8122 rotates around the yaw operating axis 8122. Then,the resulting rotating force is transmitted to the end tool 820 througha first yaw-actuation operating wire 835AY1 and a second yaw-actuationoperating wire 835AY2, so that the first and second jaws 821 and 822 ofthe end tool 820 horizontally rotate in the same direction as therotation direction of the yaw operator 812.

The actuation operator 813 includes an actuation operating axis 8131, anactuation operating bar 8132, a first actuation operating pulley 8133 a,and a second actuation operating pulley 8133 b. Herein, the actuationoperating bar 8132, the first actuation operating pulley 8133 a, and thesecond actuation operating pulley 8133 b are formed to rotate around theactuation operating axis 8131. For example, when the user holds androtates the actuation operating bar 8132 with the thumb finger, thefirst actuation operating pulley 8133 a and the second actuationoperating pulley 8133 b connected with the actuation operating bar 8132rotate around the actuation operating axis 8131. Then, the resultingrotating force is transmitted to the end tool 820 through the operatingforce transmitter 830, so that the first and second jaws 821 and 822 ofthe end tool 820 perform an actuation operation. In this case, theactuation operator 813 may be formed in various directions by ergonomicdesign according to the structure of the hand of the user gripping theoperator 810.

The actuation operator 813 is formed on a yaw-actuation connector 8124extending from the yaw operator 812. Thus, when the yaw operating bar8122 of the yaw operator 812 rotates, the actuation operator 813 alsorotates along with the yaw operating bar 8122. A first yaw-actuationoperating pulley 814P1 and a second yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P2are formed to rotate around the yaw operating axis 8121. The firstactuation operating pulley 8133 a and the first yaw-actuation operatingpulley 814P1 are connected by a first yaw-actuation connecting wire814W1, and the first yaw-actuation operating wire 835AY1 is connected tothe first yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P1. Likewise, the secondactuation operating pulley 8133 b and the second yaw-actuation operatingpulley 814P2 are connected by a second yaw-actuation connecting wire814W2, and the second yaw-actuation operating wire 835AY2 is connectedto the second yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P2.

Thus, when the yaw operating bar 8122 rotates, the yaw-actuationconnector 8124 extending therefrom and the actuation operator 813 rotatearound the yaw operating axis 8121, the first yaw-actuation connectingwire 814W1 connected to the first actuation operating pulley 8133 a andthe second yaw-actuation connecting wire 814W2 connected to the secondactuation operating pulley 8133 b also rotate around the yaw operatingaxis 8121, and consequently, the first yaw-actuation operating pulley814P1 and the second yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P2 rotate aroundthe yaw operating axis 8121.

Consequently, the first yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P1 and thesecond yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P2 are formed to rotate whenthe yaw operator 812 rotates and also rotate when the actuation operator813 rotates.

The pitch operating axis 8111 is inserted into a firstactuation-yaw-pitch (AY1P) pulley 815 a and a first actuation-yaw-pitch(AY2P) pulley 816 a such that the first AY1P pulley 815 a and the firstAY2P pulley 816 a rotate around the pitch operating axis 8111; and thefirst AY1P pulley 815 a and the first AY2P pulley 816 a are connected tothe first yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P and the secondyaw-actuation operating pulley 814P2 by the first yaw-actuationoperating wire 835AY1 and the second yaw-actuation operating wire835AY2, respectively.

The first AY1P pulley 815 a and a second AY1P pulley 815 b connectedtherewith rotate along with the actuation operator 813 when theactuation operator 813 rotates, rotate along with the yaw operator 812when the yaw operator 812 rotates, and rotate along with the pitchoperator 811 when the pitch operator 811 rotates. That is, the firstAY1P pulley 815 a and the second AY1P pulley 815 b may be considered aspulleys that reflect the rotation of the actuation operator 813, therotation of the yaw operator 812, and the rotations of the pitchoperator 811 together.

In detail, when the actuation operating bar 8132 rotates, the firstactuation operating pulley 8133 a connected with the actuation operatingbar 8132 rotates along with the first actuation operating bar 8132, andthus the first yaw-actuation connecting wire 814W1 moves to rotate thefirst yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P1. When the first yaw-actuationoperating pulley 814P1 rotates, the first yaw-actuation operating wire835AY1 connected therewith rotates to rotate the first AY1P pulley 815 aand the second AY1P pulley 815 b connected therewith. When the yawoperating bar 8122 rotates, the actuation operator 813 connected withthe yaw operating bar 8122 rotates along with the yaw operating bar8122, and thus the first actuation operating pulley 8133 a of theactuation operator 813 and the first yaw-actuation connecting wire 814W1connected therewith rotate around the yaw operating axis 8121 to rotatethe first yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P1. When the firstyaw-actuation operating pulley 814P1 rotates, the first yaw-actuationoperating wire 835AY1 connected therewith rotates to rotate the firstAY1P pulley 815 a and the second AY1P pulley 815 b connected therewith.When the pitch operating axis 8111 and the pitch operating bar 8112rotate in the direction of an arrow P of FIG. 45, the actuation operator813 also rotate around the pitch operating axis 8111. Then, the firstyaw-actuation operating wire 835AY1 rotates according to the rotation ofthe operator 810, and the first AY1P pulley 815 a connected therewithalso rotates accordingly. Consequently, the first AY1P pulley 815 a andthe second AY1P pulley 815 b rotate when the actuation operator 813rotates, rotate when the yaw operator 812 rotates, and rotate when thepitch operator 811 rotates.

Likewise, when the first AY2P pulley 816 a and a second AY2P pulley 815b connected therewith rotate along with the actuation operator 816 whenthe actuation operator 813 rotates, rotate along with the yaw operator812 when the yaw operator 812 rotates, and rotate along with the pitchoperator 811 when the pitch operator 811 rotates. That is, the firstAY2P pulley 816 a and the second AY2P pulley 816 b may be considered aspulleys that reflect the rotations of the actuation operator 813, therotation of the yaw operator 812, and the rotation of the pitch operator811 together.

Although it is illustrated that the first AY1P pulley 815 a is connectedto the second AY1P pulley 815 b, and the second AY1P pulley 815 b isconnected to a first input unit 8311 of the first differential member831, this is merely for convenience of description, and the first AY1Ppulley 815 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 8311 ofthe first differential member 831, without using the second AY1P pulley815 b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the first AY2P pulley 816 a isconnected to the second AY2P pulley 816 b, and the second AY2P pulley816 b is connected to a first input unit 8321 of the second differentialmember 832, this is merely for convenience of description, and the firstAY2P pulley 816 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 8321of the second differential member 832, without using the second AY2Ppulley 816 b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the pitch operating pulley8113 is connected to a second pitch operating pulley 8113 b, and thesecond pitch operating pulley 8113 b is connected to a second input unit8312 of the first differential member 831 and a second input unit 8322of the second differential member 832, this is merely for convenience ofdescription, and the pitch operating pulley 8113 may be directlyconnected to the second input unit 8312 of the first differential member831 and the second input unit 8322 of the second differential member832, without using the second pitch operating pulley 8113 b.

Overall Operation of Eighth Embodiment

Hereinafter, an overall configuration for the pitch operation, the yawoperation, and the actuation operation of the surgical instrument 800according to the eighth embodiment of the present invention will besummarized with reference to the above descriptions.

In the surgical instrument 800 according to the eighth embodiment of thepresent invention, the first differential member 831 includes the firstinput unit 8311, the second input unit 8312, an output unit 8313, afirst differential control member 8314, a second differential controlmember 8315, and a differential control wire 8316, and the seconddifferential member 832 includes the first input unit 8321, the secondinput unit 8322, an output unit 8323, a first differential controlmember 8324, a second differential control member 8325, and adifferential control wire 8326.

For the configuration of the end tool 820 of the present embodiment, theoperating force transmitter 830 capable of dividing the operation inputof the operator 810 into a pitch operation, a first jaw operation, and asecond jaw operation is necessary to perform the pitch, yaw, andactuation operations of the end tool 820. The rotation operation of thepitch operating bar may be directly connected to the pitch operation ofthe end tool 820. However, since the end tool 820 needs to include theoperation component of the first jaw and the operation component of thesecond jaw but the input of the operator 810 is the yaw component andthe actuation component, the operation component of the first jaw andthe operation component of the second jaw have to include the yawcomponent and the actuation component as follows:J1=Y+A(the first jaw rotates in the same direction in both the yawoperation and the actuation operation.)J2=Y−A(the second jaw rotates in the same direction in the yaw operationand rotates in an opposite direction in the actuation operation.)

Particularly, in the present embodiment, since the actuation operator813 is disposed on the yaw operator 812, the output of the operator 810is the sum of the yaw operation input, the actuation operation input,and the pitch operation input. As described above, the output of theoperator 810 may be expressed as the following equation:A _(Y1P) =A _(Y1) +P=A+Y+PA _(Y2P) =A _(Y2) +P=−A+Y+P

Thus, in order to transmit the output of the operator 810 as only thecomponents of the first and second jaws to the end tool 820, theoperating force transmitter 830 extracts the following components:J1=Y+A=A _(Y1P) −PJ2=Y−A=A _(Y2P) −P

To this end, the operating force transmitter 830 includes a differentialpulley that receives an input of A_(Y1P) and P and outputs only thedifference (J1 component) between A_(Y1P) and P, and a differentialpulley that receives an input of A_(Y2P) and P and outputs only thedifference (J2 component) between A_(Y2P) and P.

(where Y denotes the rotation of the yaw operating pulley, A denotes therotation of the actuation operating pulley, A_(Y1) denotes the rotationof the A_(Y1) pulley, A_(Y2) denotes the rotation of the A_(Y2) pulley,AY1P denotes the rotation of the A_(Y1P) pulley, A_(Y2P) denotes therotation of the A_(Y2P) pulley, P denotes the rotation of the pitchoperating pulley, J1 denotes the rotation of the first jaw operatingpulley, and J2 denotes the rotation of the second jaw operating pulley.)

This will be described below in more detail.

First, the pitch operation will be described below.

As described above, when the user grips the pitch operating bar 8112 ofthe pitch operator 811 of the operator 810 and rotates the pitchoperating bar 8112 around the pitch operating axis 8111 in the directionof the arrow P of FIG. 45, the pitch operating pulley 8113 rotates alongwith the pitch operating axis 8111. Then, the pitch pulley 823 connectedwith the pitch operating pulley 8113 by the pitch wire 835P, the firstjaw pulley 824 connected therewith, the second jaw pulley 825, the firstjaw 821, and the second jaw 822 rotate around a pitch rotating axis820PX to perform a pitch operation.

In this case, the pitch operation does not affect the output units ofthe first and second differential pulleys 831 and 832 of the operatingforce transmitter 830, which determine the operations of the first andsecond jaws 821 and 822 of the end tool 820. In more detail, when thefirst AY1P pulley 815 a and the first AY2P pulley 816 a rotate aroundthe pitch operating axis 8111 according to the pitch operation, thefirst input unit 8311 of the first differential member 831 that isconnected with the second AY1P pulley 815 b and the second input unit8312 of the first differential member 831 that is connected with thepitch operating pulley 8113 rotate; however, since the rotations areoffset in the first differential member 831, the output unit 8313 of thefirst differential member 831 does not rotate. Likewise, the first inputunit 8321 of the second differential member 832 that is connected withthe second AY2P pulley 816 b and the second input unit 8322 of thesecond differential member 832 that is connected with the pitchoperating pulley 8113 rotate; however, since the rotations are offset inthe second differential member 832, the output unit 8323 of the seconddifferential member 832 does not rotate. Thus, the pitch operation maybe performed independently of the yaw operation and the actuationoperation.

The yaw operation and the actuation operation of the present embodimentwill be described below.

In the surgical instrument 800, the first differential member 831includes the first input unit 8311, the second input unit 8312, theoutput unit 8313, the first differential control member 8314, the seconddifferential control member 8315, and the differential control wire8316, and the second differential member 832 includes the first inputunit 8321, the second input unit 8322, the output unit 8323, the firstdifferential control member 8324, the second differential control member8325, and the differential control wire 8326.

The first input unit 8311 of the first differential member 831 isconnected with the second AY1P pulley 815 b to rotate when the actuationoperator 813 rotates, rotate when the yaw operator 812 rotates, androtate when the pitch operator 811 rotates. Also, the second input unit8312 of the first differential member 831 is connected with the secondpitch operating pulley 8113 b to rotate when the pitch operator 811rotates. Also, the output unit 8313 of the first differential member 831is connected with the first jaw wire 835J1 to control the operation ofthe first jaw 821 of the end tool 820.

The first input unit 8321 of the second differential member 832 isconnected with the second AY2P pulley 816 b to rotate when the actuationoperator 816 rotates, rotate when the yaw operator 812 rotates, androtate when the pitch operator 811 rotates. Also, the second input unit8322 of the second differential member 832 is connected with the secondpitch operating pulley 8113 b to rotate when the pitch operator 811rotates. Also, the output unit 8323 of the second differential member832 is connected with the second jaw wire 835J2 to control the operationof the second jaw 822 of the end tool 820.

As described above, the first AY1P pulley 815 a, the second AY1P pulley815 b connected therewith, the first AY2P pulley 816 a, and the secondAY2P pulley 816 b connected therewith rotate along with the actuationoperator 813 when the actuation operator 813 rotates, rotate along withthe yaw operator 812 when the yaw operator 812 rotates, and rotate alongwith the pitch operator 811 when the pitch operator 811 rotates.

Referring to the above equation, when the second AY1P pulley 815 b andthe pitch operating pulley 8113 are connected respectively to the twoinput units of the first differential member 831, only a pure operationcontrol component of the first jaw 821 may be extracted from therotation of the pitch operator 811, the rotation of the yaw operator812, and the rotation of the actuation operator 813.

Similarly, when the second AY2P pulley 816 b and the pitch operatingpulley 8113 are connected respectively to the two input units of thesecond differential member 832, only a pure operation control componentof the second jaw 822 may be extracted from the rotation of the pitchoperator 811, the rotation of the yaw operator 812, and the rotation ofthe actuation operator 813.

Consequently, for a yaw operation, when the user holds and rotates theyaw operating bar 8122 with the index finger in the direction of anarrow Y of FIG. 45, the actuation operator 813 connected with the yawoperator 812 rotates around the yaw operating axis 8121. Then, theresulting rotating force is transmitted to the first AY1P pulley 815 aand the second AY1P pulley 815 b connected therewith through the firstyaw-actuation connecting wire 814W1, the first yaw-actuation operatingpulley 814P1, and the first yaw-actuation operating wire 835AY1, torotate the second AY1P pulley 815 b in the counterclockwise direction.Then, the first input unit 8311 of the first differential member 831that is connected with the second AY1P pulley 815 b rotates in thecounterclockwise direction, and thus the output unit 8313 of the firstdifferential member 831 rotates in the counterclockwise direction. Then,the first jaw wire 835J1 connected with the output unit 8313, the firstjaw pulley 824 connected therewith, and the first jaw 821 connectedtherewith rotate around a jaw rotating axis 820JX in thecounterclockwise direction.

At the same time, when the yaw operating bar 8122 is rotated in thedirection of the arrow Y of FIG. 45, the actuation operator 813connected with the yaw operator 812 rotates around the yaw operatingaxis 8121. Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted to thefirst AY2P pulley 816 a and the second AY2P pulley 816 b connectedtherewith through the second yaw-actuation connecting wire 814W2, thesecond yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P2, and the secondyaw-actuation operating wire 835AY2, to rotate the second AY2P pulley816 b in the counterclockwise direction. Then, the first input unit 8321of the second differential member 832 that is connected with the secondAY2P pulley 816 b rotates in the counterclockwise direction, and thusthe output unit 8323 of the second differential member 832 rotates inthe counterclockwise direction. Then, the second jaw wire 835J2connected with the output unit 8323, the second jaw pulley 825 connectedtherewith, and the second jaw 822 connected therewith rotate around thejaw rotating axis 820JX in the counterclockwise direction.

Consequently, when the yaw operator 812 rotates in the direction of thearrow Y of FIG. 45, the first jaw 821 and the second jaw 822 rotatearound the jaw rotating axis 820JX in the same direction to perform ayaw operation.

The actuation operation of the present embodiment will be describedbelow.

For an actuation operation, when the user holds and rotates theactuation operating bar 8132 with the thumb finger in the direction ofan arrow A of FIG. 45, the actuation operator 813 rotates around theactuation operating axis 8131. Then, the resulting rotating force istransmitted to the first AY1P pulley 815 a and the second AY1P pulley815 b connected therewith through the first yaw-actuation connectingwire 814W1, the first yaw-actuation operating pulley 814P1, and thefirst yaw-actuation operating wire 835AY1, to rotate the second AY1Ppulley 815 b in the clockwise direction. Then, the first input unit 8311of the first differential member 831 that is connected with the secondAY1P pulley 815 b rotates in the clockwise direction, and thus theoutput unit 8313 of the first differential member 831 rotates in theclockwise direction. Then, the first jaw wire 835J1 connected with theoutput unit 8313, the first jaw pulley 824 connected therewith, and thefirst jaw 821 connected therewith rotate around the jaw rotating axis820JX in the clockwise direction.

At the same time, when the actuation operating bar 8132 is rotated inthe direction of the arrow A of FIG. 45, the actuation operator 813rotates around the actuation operating axis 8131. Then, the resultingrotating force is transmitted to the first AY2P pulley 816 a and thesecond AY2P pulley 816 b connected therewith through the secondyaw-actuation connecting wire 814W2, the second yaw-actuation operatingpulley 814P2, and the second yaw-actuation operating wire 835AY2, torotate the second AY2P pulley 816 b in the counterclockwise direction.Then, the first input unit 8321 of the second differential member 832that is connected with the second AY2P pulley 816 b rotates in thecounterclockwise direction, and thus the output unit 8323 of the seconddifferential member 832 rotates in the counterclockwise direction. Then,the second jaw wire 835J2 connected with the output unit 8323, thesecond jaw pulley 825 connected therewith, and the second jaw 822connected therewith rotate around the jaw rotating axis 820JX in thecounterclockwise direction.

Consequently, when the yaw operator 812 rotates in the direction of thearrow A of FIG. 45, the first jaw 821 and the second jaw 822 rotatearound the jaw rotating axis 820JX in opposite directions to perform anactuation operation.

Thus, according to the present invention, the pitch operation of the endtool, the rotation operation of the first jaw, and the rotationoperation of the second jaw may be extracted respectively from therotation of the pitch operator 811, the rotation of the yaw operator812, and the rotation of the actuation operator 813. Accordingly, evenwhen the pitch, yaw, and actuation operations of the operator occursimultaneously or not, the pitch, yaw, and actuation operations of theoperator may be independently divided into the pitch operation componentof the end tool, the rotation operation component of the first jaw, andthe rotation operation component of the second jaw.

Any combination of various configurations of the operator described withreference to FIG. 3A, various configurations of the operating forcetransmitter described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 15 to 27, andvarious modifications described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14 may beapplied to the surgical instrument 800 according to the eighthembodiment of the present invention.

<Modification of Operator of Eighth Embodiment of Surgical Instrument>(E2+H2+D4)

FIG. 46 is a view illustrating a surgical instrument 800 a according toa modification of the operator of the eighth embodiment illustrated inFIG. 45. Since the surgical instrument 800 a according to a modificationof the operator of the eighth embodiment of the present invention issimilar to the surgical instrument 800 (see FIG. 45) according to theeighth embodiment of the present invention and is different from thesurgical instrument 100 in terms of the configuration of the operator,the configuration of the operator will be mainly described below.

Referring to FIG. 46, an operator 810 a of the surgical instrument 800 aaccording to a modification of the operator 810 of the eighth embodimentof the present invention uses the third modification of the differentialpulley illustrated in FIGS. 22 and 23.

In detail, in the operator 810 of the eighth embodiment, the actuationoperator 813 is disposed on the yaw operator 812. The sum of theactuation operation input and the yaw operation input is output from theoperator 810, and the first jaw and the second jaw of the end tool 820need the sum of and the difference between the yaw operation input andthe actuation operation input in the eighth embodiment. Therefore, adifferential pulley capable of outputting the sum of the yaw operationand the actuation operation may be used in the configuration of theoperator.

However, in the configuration of the operator 810 of the eighthembodiment, since the actuation operator 813 is disposed on the yawoperator 812, the third modification (see FIGS. 22 and 23) of thedifferential pulley in which one input unit is not independent of but isformed on another input unit may be used.

Referring to FIG. 46, the third modification (see FIGS. 22 and 23) ofthe differential pulley including a yaw input unit and an actuationinput unit may be applied to the operator 810 such that the operator 810is modified to have the output of AYP=A+Y+P, AYP2=−A+Y+P.

Since the modification of the eighth embodiment are the same in otherconfigurations except for the configuration of the operator 810 a, itmay also use the other configurations of the eight embodiment.

That is, as described above, an operating force transmitter 830 of thesurgical instrument 800 a according to the this modification includes afirst differential pulley 838 and a second differential pulley 839, andthe first differential pulley 838 includes a first input unit 8381, asecond input unit 8382, an output unit, and a connector 8384. The outputunit of the first differential pulley 838 may be substantially identicalto the first AY2P pulley 816 a. The second differential pulley 839includes a first input unit 8391, a second input unit 8392, an outputunit, and a connector 8394. The output unit of the second differentialpulley 839 may be substantially identical to the first AY1P pulley 815a.

By the first differential pulley 838 and the second differential pulley839, when one of two or more input units rotates, only the output unitmay be rotated without other input units rotating, and when two or moreinput units rotate simultaneously, a single rotating force equal to thesum or (the difference between) the rotating forces of two input unitsmay be output through the output unit.

<Ninth Embodiment of Surgical Instrument> (E2+H3+D)

Hereinafter, a surgical instrument 900 according to a ninth embodimentof the present invention will be described. In the surgical instrument900 according to the ninth embodiment of the present invention, an endtool 920 has the configuration described with reference to FIGS. 40 to43, and an operator 910 includes a first jaw operator and a second jawoperator that operate a first jaw and second jaw independently insteadof a yaw operator and an actuation operator as in the surgicalinstrument 300 according to third second embodiment illustrated in FIG.30.

FIG. 47 is a view illustrating the surgical instrument 900 according tothe ninth embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 47, thesurgical instrument 900 according to the ninth embodiment of the presentinvention includes an operator 910, an end tool 920, an operating forcetransmitter 930, and a connector (not illustrated).

The end tool 920 includes a first jaw 921, a second jaw 922, a pitchpulley 923, a first jaw pulley 924, and a second jaw pulley 925, and theoperating force transmitter 930 includes a pitch wire 935P, a first jawwire 935J1, and a second jaw wire 935J2. In the end tool 920, thepulley/wire for a pitch operation, the pulley/wire for an operation ofthe first jaw, and the pulley/wire for an operation of the second jaware separately formed such that one operation does not affect otheroperations. Since the end tool 920 is substantially identical to the endtool 720 described with reference to FIGS. 40 to 43, a detaileddescription thereof will be omitted herein.

The operating force transmitter 930 includes a first differential member931 and a second differential member 932. The first differential member931 and the second differential member 932 includes two or more inputunits and one input unit, receives an input of rotating forces from thetwo or more input units, extracts a desired rotating force from the sumof (or the difference between) the input rotating forces, and outputsthe desired rotating force through the output unit. The first and seconddifferential members 931 and 932 may include various differentialpulleys and differential gears, such as, the differential pulley of thesurgical instrument 100 according to the first embodiment illustrated inFIGS. 4A and 4B, the first modification of the differential pulleyillustrated in FIG. 15, the second modification of the differentialpulley illustrated in FIG. 18, and the third modification of thedifferential pulley illustrated in FIG. 22. That is, although thedifferential pulley of FIG. 21E is illustrated as the first and seconddifferential members 931 and 932 of the surgical instrument 900according to the ninth embodiment in FIG. 47, the present invention isnot limited thereto, and various differential pulleys and differentialgears may be used in the present embodiment.

Hereinafter, the operator 910 of the surgical instrument 900 accordingto the ninth embodiment of the present invention will be described inmore detail.

Referring to FIG. 47, the operator 910 of the surgical instrument 900according to the ninth embodiment of the present invention includes apitch operator 911 controlling a pitch motion of the end tool 920, afirst jaw operator 912 controlling a motion of the first jaw 921 of theend tool 920, and a second jaw operator 913 controlling a motion of thesecond jaw 922 of the end tool 920.

The pitch operator 911 includes a pitch operating axis 9111, a pitchoperating bar 9112, and a pitch operating pulley 9113. Herein, the pitchoperating axis 9111 may be formed in the direction parallel to the Yaxis, and the pitch operating bar 9112 may be connected with the pitchoperating axis 9111 to rotate along with the pitch operating axis 9111.The pitch operating pulley 9113 is integrated with the pitch operatingaxis 9111 to rotate along with the pitch operating axis 9111.

The first jaw operator 912 includes a first jaw operating axis 9121, afirst jaw operating bar 9122, and a first jaw operating pulley 9123. Afirst jaw operating wire 935J11 may be connected to the first jawoperating pulley 9123. In this case, the first jaw operating axis 9121may be formed in various directions by ergonomic design according to thestructure of the hand of the user gripping the operator 910. The firstjaw operating bar 9122 and the first jaw operating pulley 9123 areformed to rotate around the first jaw operating axis 9121. For example,when the user holds and rotates the first jaw operating bar 9122 withthe thumb finger, the first jaw operating pulley 9123 connected with thefirst jaw operating bar 9122 rotates around the first jaw operating axis9121. Then, the resulting rotating force is transmitted to the end tool920 through the operating force transmitter 930, so that the first jaw921 of the end tool 920 horizontally rotates in the same direction asthe rotation direction of the first jaw operating pulley 9123.

The second jaw operator 913 includes a second jaw operating axis 9131, asecond jaw operating bar 9132, and a second jaw operating pulley 9133.Although it is illustrated that the second jaw operating axis 9131 isformed to extend from the pitch operating bar 9112, the presentinvention is not limited thereto. For example, the pitch operating bar9112 and the second jaw operating axis 9131 may be formed as separatemembers on different axes. In this case, the second jaw operating axis9131 may be formed in various directions by ergonomic design accordingto the structure of the hand of the user gripping the operator 910. Asecond jaw operating wire 935J21 may be connected to the second jawoperating pulley 9133. The second jaw operating bar 9132 and the secondjaw operating pulley 9133 are formed to rotate around the second jawoperating axis 9131. For example, when the user holds and rotates thesecond jaw operating bar 9132 with the index finger, the second jawoperating pulley 9133 connected with the second jaw operating bar 9132rotates around the second jaw operating axis 9131. Then, the resultingrotating force is transmitted to the end tool 920 through the operatingforce transmitter 930, so that the second jaw 922 of the end tool 920horizontally rotates in the same direction as the rotation direction ofthe second jaw operating pulley 9133.

The pitch operating axis 9111 is inserted into a first second yaw-pitch(Y2P) pulley 914 a and a first first actuation-pitch (J1P) pulley 915 asuch that the first Y2P pulley 914 a and the first J1P pulley 915 arotate around the pitch operating axis 9111.

The first J2P pulley 914 a and a second J2P pulley 914 b connectedtherewith rotate along with the second jaw operating pulley 9133 whenthe second jaw operating pulley 9133 rotates, and rotate along with thepitch operating pulley 9113 when the pitch operating pulley 9113rotates. That is, the first J2P pulley 914 a and the second J2P pulley914 b may be considered as pulleys that reflect the rotations of thesecond jaw operating pulley 9133 and the rotation of the pitch operatingpulley 9113 together.

In detail, when the second jaw operating bar 9132 rotates, the secondjaw operating pulley 9133 connected with the second jaw operating bar9132 rotates along with the second jaw operating bar 9132, and thus thesecond jaw operating wire 935J21 connected therewith moves to rotate thefirst J2P pulley 914 a and the second J2P pulley 914 b connectedtherewith. When the pitch operating axis 9111 and the pitch operatingbar 9112 rotate in the direction of an arrow P of FIG. 47, the secondjaw operating axis 9131 and the second jaw operating pulley 9133 alsorotate around the pitch operating axis 9111. Then, the second jawoperating wire 935J21 rotates around the pitch operating axis 9111 inthe direction of the arrow P of FIG. 47 according to the rotation of theoperator 910, and the first J2P pulley 914 a connected therewith alsorotates accordingly. Consequently, the first J2P pulley 914 a and thesecond J2P pulley 914 b rotate when the second jaw operating pulley 9133rotates, and rotate when the pitch operating pulley 9113 rotates.

Likewise, the first J1P pulley 915 a and a second J1P pulley 915 bconnected therewith rotate along with the first jaw operating pulley9123 when the first jaw operating pulley 9123 rotates, and rotate alongwith the pitch operating pulley 9113 when the pitch operating pulley9113 rotates. That is, the first J1P pulley 915 a and the second J1Ppulley 915 b may be considered as pulleys that reflect the rotation ofthe first jaw operating pulley 9123 and the rotations of the pitchoperating pulley 9113 together.

Although it is illustrated that the first J2P pulley 914 a is connectedto the second J2P pulley 914 b, and the second J2P pulley 914 b isconnected to a first input unit 9321 of the second differential member932, this is merely for convenience of description, and the first J2Ppulley 914 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 9321 ofthe second differential member 932, without using the second J2P pulley914 b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the first J1P pulley 915 a isconnected to the second J1P pulley 915 b, and the second J1P pulley 915b is connected to a first input unit 9311 of the first differentialmember 931, this is merely for convenience of description, and the firstJ1P pulley 915 a may be directly connected to the first input unit 9311of the first differential member 931, without using the second J1Ppulley 915 b.

Likewise, although it is illustrated that the pitch operating pulley9113 is connected to a second pitch operating pulley 913 b, and thesecond pitch operating pulley 913 b is connected to a second input unit9312 of the first differential member 931 and a second input unit 9322of the second differential member 932, this is merely for convenience ofdescription, and the pitch operating pulley 9113 may be directlyconnected to the second input unit 9312 of the first differential member931 and the second input unit 9322 of the second differential member932, without using the second pitch operating pulley 913 b.

Overall Operation of Ninth Embodiment

Hereinafter, an overall configuration for the pitch operation, the yawoperation, and the actuation operation of the surgical instrument 900according to the ninth embodiment of the present invention will besummarized with reference to the above descriptions.

In the surgical instrument 900 according to the ninth embodiment of thepresent invention, the first differential member 931 includes a firstinput unit 9311, a second input unit 9312, an output unit 9313, a firstdifferential control member 9314, a second differential control member9315, and a differential control wire 9316, and the second differentialmember 932 includes the first input unit 9321, the second input unit9322, an output unit 9323, a first differential control member 9324, asecond differential control member 9325, and a differential control wire9326.

For the configuration of the end tool 920 of the present embodiment, theoperating force transmitter 930 capable of dividing the operation inputof the operator 910 into a pitch operation, a first jaw operation, and asecond jaw operation is necessary to perform the pitch, yaw, andactuation operations of the end tool 920. The rotation operation of thepitch operating bar may be directly connected to the pitch operation ofthe end tool. The operator includes the first jaw operator and thesecond jaw operator, and the output of the operator may be expressed asthe following equation:J1P=J1+PJ2P=J2+P

Thus, in order to transmit the output of the operator 910 as only thecomponents of the first and second jaws to the end tool 920, theoperating force transmitter 930 extracts the following components:J1=J1P−PJ2=J2P−P

To this end, the operating force transmitter 930 includes a differentialpulley that receives an input of J1P and P and outputs only thedifference (J1 component) between J1P and P, and a differential pulleythat receives an input of J2P and P and outputs only the difference (J2component) between J2P and P.

(where J1P denotes the rotation of the J1P pulley, J2P denotes therotation of the J2P pulley, J1 denotes the rotation of the first jawoperating pulley, J2 denotes the rotation of the second jaw operatingpulley, and P denotes the rotation of the pitch operating pulley.)

The first input unit 9311 of the first differential member 931 isconnected with the second J1P pulley 915 b to rotate when the first jawoperating pulley 9123 rotates and also rotate when the pitch operatingpulley 9113 rotates. Also, the second input unit 9312 of the firstdifferential member 931 is connected with the pitch operating pulley9113 to rotate when the pitch operating pulley 9113 rotates. Also, theoutput unit 9313 of the first differential member 931 is connected withthe first jaw wire 935J1 to control the operation of the first jaw 921of the end tool 920.

The first input unit 9321 of the second differential member 932 isconnected with the second J2P pulley 914 b to rotate when the second jawoperating pulley 9133 rotates and also rotate when the pitch operatingpulley 9113 rotates. Also, the second input unit 9322 of the seconddifferential member 932 is connected with the pitch operating pulley9113 to rotate when the pitch operating pulley 9113 rotates. Also, theoutput unit 9323 of the second differential member 932 is connected withthe second jaw wire 935J2 to control the operation of the second jaw 922of the end tool 920.

The pitch operating pulley 9113 is connected with the pitch wire 935P tocontrol the pitch operation of the end tool 920.

First, the pitch operation will be described below.

As described above, when the user grips the pitch operating bar 9112 ofthe pitch operator 911 of the operator 910 and rotates the pitchoperating bar 9112 around the pitch operating axis 9111 in the directionof an arrow P (pitch) of FIG. 47, the pitch operating pulley 9113rotates along with the pitch operating axis 9111. Then, the pitch pulley923 connected with the pitch operating pulley 9113 by the pitch wire935P, the first jaw pulley 924 connected therewith, the second jawpulley 925, the first jaw 921, and the second jaw 922 rotate around apitch rotating axis 920PX to perform a pitch operation.

In this case, the first J2P pulley 914 a and the first J1P pulley 915 arotate around the pitch operating axis 9111. Then, the first input unit9311 of the first differential member 931 that is connected with thesecond J1P pulley 915 b and the second input unit 9312 of the firstdifferential member 931 that is connected with the pitch operatingpulley 9113 rotate; however, since the rotations are offset in the firstdifferential member 931, the output unit 9313 of the first differentialmember 931 does not rotate. Likewise, the first input unit 9321 of thesecond differential member 932 that is connected with the second J2Ppulley 914 b and the second input unit 9322 of the second differentialmember 932 that is connected with the pitch operating pulley 9113rotate; however, since the rotations are offset in the seconddifferential member 932, the output unit 9323 of the second differentialmember 932 does not rotate. Thus, the pitch operation may be performedindependently of the yaw operation and the actuation operation.

The yaw operation and the actuation operation of the present embodimentwill be described below.

For a yaw operation, the user holds and rotates the first jaw operatingbar 9122 with the thumb finger in the direction of an arrow J1 of FIG.47, and holds and rotates the second jaw operating bar 9132 with theindex finger in the direction of an arrow J2 of FIG. 47 (that is,rotates the first jaw operating bar 9122 and the second jaw operatingbar 9132 in the same direction). For an actuation operation, the userrotates the first jaw operating bar 9122 in a direction opposite to thedirection of the arrow J1 of FIG. 47, and rotates the second jawoperating bar 9132 in the direction of the arrow J2 of FIG. 47 (that is,rotates the first jaw operating bar 9122 and the second jaw operatingbar 9132 in opposite directions).

Then, the first jaw operating pulley 9123 connected with the first jawoperating bar 9122 rotates around the first jaw operating axis 9121, andthe resulting rotating force is transmitted through the first jawoperating wire 935J11 to the first J1P pulley 915 a and the second J1Ppulley 915 b connected therewith, to rotate the second J1P pulley 915 b.When the second J1P pulley 915 b rotates, the first input unit 9311 ofthe first differential member 931 connected therewith and the outputunit 9313 of the first differential member 931 connected therewithrotate.

At the same time, the second jaw operating pulley 9133 connected withthe second jaw operating bar 9132 rotates around the second jawoperating axis 9131, and the resulting rotating force is transmittedthrough the second jaw operating wire 935J21 to the first J2P pulley 914a and the second J2P pulley 914 b connected therewith, to rotate thesecond J2P pulley 914 b. When the second J2P pulley 914 b rotates, thefirst input unit 9321 of the second differential member 932 connectedtherewith and the output unit 9323 of the second differential member 932connected therewith rotate.

As described above, the first J2P pulley 914 a and the second J2P pulley914 b connected therewith rotate along with the second jaw operatingpulley 9133 when the second jaw operating pulley 9133 rotates, androtate along with the pitch operating pulley 9113 when the pitchoperating pulley 9113 rotates. The first J1P pulley 915 a and the secondJ1P pulley 915 b connected therewith rotate along with the first jawoperating pulley 9123 when the first jaw operating pulley 9123 rotates,and rotate along with the pitch operating pulley 9113 when the pitchoperating pulley 9113 rotates.

Consequently, when the second J1P pulley 915 b and the pitch operatingpulley 9113 are connected respectively to the two input units of thefirst differential member 931, only a pure operation control componentof the first jaw 921 may be extracted from the rotation of the pitchoperating pulley 9113 and the rotation of the first jaw operating pulley9123.

Similarly, when the second J2P pulley 914 b and the pitch operatingpulley 9113 are connected respectively to the two input units of thesecond differential member 932, only a pure operation control componentof the second jaw 922 may be extracted from the rotation of the pitchoperating pulley 9113 and the rotation of the second jaw operatingpulley 9133.

Consequently, for a yaw operation, when the first jaw operating bar 9122is rotated in the direction of the arrow J1 of FIG. 47 and the secondjaw operating bar 9132 is rotated in the direction of the arrow J2 ofFIG. 47, the first J2P pulley 914 a and the second J2P pulley 914 bconnected therewith rotate in the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 47and the first J1P pulley 915 a and the second J1P pulley 915 b rotate inthe counterclockwise direction in FIG. 47. Then, the first input unit9311 of the first differential member 931 connected with the second J1Ppulley 915 b rotates in the counterclockwise direction. Accordingly, theoutput unit 9313 of the first differential member 931 rotates in thecounterclockwise direction, and the first jaw wire 935J1 connected withthe output unit 9313, the first jaw pulley 924 connected with the firstjaw wire 935J1, and the first jaw 921 connected with the first jawpulley 924 rotate around a jaw rotating axis 920JX in thecounterclockwise direction. Likewise, the first input unit 9321 of thesecond differential member 932 connected with the second J2P pulley 914b rotates in the counterclockwise direction. Accordingly, the outputunit 9323 of the second differential member 932 rotates in thecounterclockwise direction, and the second jaw wire 935J2 connected withthe output unit 9323, the second jaw pulley 925 connected with thesecond jaw wire 935J2, and the second jaw 922 connected with the secondjaw pulley 925 rotate around the jaw rotating axis 920JX in thecounterclockwise direction. In this manner, the first jaw 921 and thesecond jaw 922 rotate in the same direction to perform a yaw operation.

Similarly, for an actuation operation, when the first jaw operating bar9122 is rotated in the direction of the arrow J1 of FIG. 47 and thesecond jaw operating bar 9132 is rotated in the direction of the arrowJ2 of FIG. 47, the first J2P pulley 914 a and the second J2P pulley 914b connected therewith rotate in the counterclockwise direction in FIG.47 and the first J1P pulley 915 a and the second J1P pulley 915 b rotatein the counterclockwise direction in FIG. 47. Then, the first input unit9311 of the first differential member 931 that is connected with thesecond J1P pulley 915 b rotates in the clockwise direction. Accordingly,the output unit 9313 of the first differential member 931 rotates in theclockwise direction, and the first jaw wire 935J1 connected with theoutput unit 9313, the first jaw pulley 924 connected with the first jawwire 935J1, and the first jaw 921 connected with the first jaw pulley924 rotate around the jaw rotating axis 920JX in the clockwisedirection. Likewise, the first input unit 9321 of the seconddifferential member 932 that is connected with the second J2P pulley 914b rotates in the counterclockwise direction. Accordingly, the outputunit 9323 of the second differential member 932 rotates in thecounterclockwise direction, and the second jaw wire 935J2 connected withthe output unit 9323, the second jaw pulley 925 connected with thesecond jaw wire 935J2, and the second jaw 922 connected with the secondjaw pulley 925 rotate around the jaw rotating axis 920JX in thecounterclockwise direction. In this manner, the first jaw 921 and thesecond jaw 922 rotate in opposite directions to perform an actuationoperation.

Thus, according to the present invention, the yaw operation and theactuation operation of the end tool may be extracted respectively fromthe rotation of the first jaw operating pulley 9123 and the rotation ofthe second jaw operating pulley 9133.

According to the present invention, the pitch operation of the end tool,the rotation operation of the first jaw, and the rotation operation ofthe second jaw may be extracted respectively from the rotation of thepitch operating pulley 9113, the rotation of the first jaw operatingpulley 9123, and the rotation of the second jaw operating pulley 9133.Thus, even when the pitch, first jaw, and second jaw operations of theoperator occur simultaneously or not, the pitch, yaw, and actuationoperations of the operator may be independently divided into the pitchoperation component of the end tool, the rotation operation component ofthe first jaw, and the rotation operation component of the second jaw.

Any combination of various configurations of the operator described withreference to FIG. 3A, various configurations of the operating forcetransmitter described with reference to FIGS. 4A and 15 to 27, andvarious modifications described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14 may beapplied to the surgical instrument 900 according to the ninth embodimentof the present invention.

While the present invention has been described with reference toexemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those ofordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and details maybe made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention as defined by the appended claims. The exemplary embodimentsshould be considered in descriptive sense only and not for purposes oflimitation. Therefore, the scope of the invention is defined not by thedetailed description of the invention but by the appended claims, andall differences within the scope will be construed as being included inthe present invention.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention relates to surgical instruments and may be appliedto surgical instruments that may be manually operated to performlaparoscopic operations or various surgical operations.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A surgical instrument comprising: an endtool formed to rotate in two or more directions; an operator controllingan operation of the end tool; an operating force transmittertransmitting a movement of the operator to the end tool and comprisingone or more wires and one or more pulleys; and a connector having oneend portion coupled to the end tool and another end portion coupled tothe operator, at least a portion of the connector being extended in afirst direction, wherein the operator has at least one terminal free endthat extends toward the end tool and a connection end connecting the atleast one terminal free end to the another end portion of the connector,wherein the connection end has a first end and a second end, and the atleast one terminal free end rotates around the first end of theconnection end, and the first end of the connection end is spaced awayfrom the another end portion of the connector, and the second end of theconnection end is connected to the another end portion of the connectorwith an angle, wherein the at least one terminal free end is closer tothe end tool than the connection end, wherein when the at least oneterminal free end of the operator rotates in a predetermined directionrelative to a direction parallel to the first direction, the end toolrotates in substantially the same direction with the predetermineddirection of the at least one terminal free end of the operator relativeto the direction parallel to the first direction, and wherein while theat least one terminal free end of the operator and the end tool rotate,the at least one terminal free end of the operator and the end tool areextended in substantially the same direction relative to the firstdirection.
 2. The surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the operatoris formed to extend away from a user gripping the surgical instrument.3. The surgical instrument of claim 2, wherein the at least one terminalfree end includes a finger grip.
 4. The surgical instrument of claim 1,wherein the operator comprises one or more operating axes forcontrolling an operation of the end tool and one or more operating barsrotating around the one or more operating axes, and the one or moreoperating bars are formed closer to the end tool than the one or moreoperating axes.
 5. The surgical instrument of claim 4, wherein the atleast one terminal free end includes a finger grip.
 6. The surgicalinstrument of claim 1, wherein the at least one terminal free end of theoperator is formed toward the end tool such that a direction of an endportion of a finger of a user gripping the operator is oriented towardthe end tool.
 7. The surgical instrument of claim 6, wherein the atleast one terminal free end includes a finger grip.
 8. The surgicalinstrument of claim 1, wherein the end tool comprises a first jaw and asecond jaw that are formed to rotate, and the operator controlsoperations of the first and second jaws of the end tool.
 9. The surgicalinstrument of claim 8, wherein the operating force transmittercomprises: a first jaw operating wire connected with the operator totransmit a rotation of the operator to the first jaw; and a second jawoperating wire connected with the operator to transmit a rotation of theoperator to the second jaw, wherein an operation of the first jawoperating wire and an operation of the second jaw operating wire areperformed independently.
 10. The surgical instrument of claim 9, whereina yaw motion and an actuation motion of the end tool are performed bythe first jaw operating wire rotating a first first-jaw pulley connectedto the first jaw and the second jaw operating wire rotating a firstsecond-jaw pulley connected to the second jaw, and a pitch motion of theend tool is performed by pulling both sides of the first jaw operatingwire wound around the first first-jaw pulley or pulling both sides ofthe second jaw operating wire wound around the first second-jaw pulley.11. The surgical instrument of claim 9, wherein a pitch motion, a yawmotion, and an actuation motion of the end tool are controlled only bytwo of the first jaw operating wire and the second jaw operating wire.12. The surgical instrument of claim 11, wherein the end tool furthercomprises a pitch pulley rotating around a pitch rotating axis of thefirst jaw and the second jaw, and the operating force transmitterfurther comprises a pitch wire wound around the pitch pulley andconnected with the operator to transmit a pitch motion of the operatorto the pitch pulley.
 13. The surgical instrument of claim 9, wherein apitch motion of the end tool is performed by simultaneously pulling bothsides of at least one of the first jaw operating wire and the second jawoperating wire wound around the end tool.
 14. The surgical instrument ofclaim 9, wherein a yaw motion or an actuation motion of the end tool isperformed by pulling one side and pushing the other side of at least oneof the first jaw operating wire and the second jaw operating wire woundaround the end tool.
 15. The surgical instrument of claim 9, wherein theend tool further comprises a pitch pulley rotating around a pitchrotating axis of the first jaw and the second jaw, and the operatingforce transmitter further comprises a pitch wire wound around the pitchpulley and connected with the operator to transmit a pitch motion of theoperator to the pitch pulley.
 16. The surgical instrument of claim 8,wherein the operating force transmitter comprises a four-bar linkconnecting the end tool and the operator to transmit a pitch motion ofthe operator to the end tool.
 17. The surgical instrument of claim 8,wherein the operating force transmitter comprises: a pitch wireconnected with the operator to transmit a pitch motion of the operatorto the end tool; a yaw wire connected with the operator to transmit ayaw motion of the operator to the end tool; and an actuation wireconnected with the operator to transmit an actuation motion of theoperator to the end tool, wherein an operation of the pitch wire, anoperation of the yaw wire, and an operation of the actuation wire areperformed independently.
 18. The surgical instrument of claim 8, whereinan actuation motion of the end tool is performed by an actuation wireconnected with a rotating axis of the first jaw and the second jaw, ayaw motion of the end tool is performed by a yaw wire rotating a yawpulley connected with the first jaw and the second jaw, and a pitchmotion of the end tool is performed by a pitch wire rotating a pitchpulley connected with the first jaw and the second jaw.
 19. The surgicalinstrument of claim 8, wherein the operating force transmittercomprises: a pitch wire connected with the operator to transmit a pitchmotion of the operator to the end tool; a first jaw operating wireconnected with the operator to transmit a rotation of the operator tothe first jaw; and a second jaw operating wire connected with theoperator to transmit a rotation of the operator to the second jaw,wherein an operation of the pitch wire, an operation of the first jawoperating wire, and an operation of the second jaw operating wire areperformed independently.
 20. The surgical instrument of claim 8, whereina yaw motion and an actuation motion of the end tool are performed by afirst jaw operating wire rotating a first jaw pulley connected to thefirst jaw and a second jaw operating wire rotating a second jaw pulleyconnected to the second jaw, and a pitch motion of the end tool isperformed by a pitch wire rotating a pitch pulley connected with thefirst jaw and the second jaw.
 21. The surgical instrument of claim 8,wherein the operator comprises: a pitch operator controlling a pitchmotion of the end tool; a yaw operator controlling a yaw motion of theend tool; and an actuation operator performing control such that thefirst and second jaws of the end tool rotate in opposite directions. 22.The surgical instrument of claim 21, wherein when the pitch operatorrotates around a pitch operating axis, the end tool rotates in the samedirection as the pitch operator with respect to the pitch operatingaxis.
 23. The surgical instrument of claim 21, wherein when the yawoperator rotates around a yaw operating axis, the end tool rotates inthe same direction as the yaw operator with respect to the yaw operatingaxis.
 24. The surgical instrument of claim 21, wherein when theactuation operator rotates around an actuation operating axis, the firstjaw and the second jaw rotate in opposite directions.
 25. The surgicalinstrument of claim 21, wherein when the pitch operator rotates around apitch operating axis, the yaw operator and the actuation operator rotatealong with the pitch operator.
 26. The surgical instrument of claim 21,wherein the yaw operator and the actuation operator are formed to rotateindependently.
 27. The surgical instrument of claim 21, wherein theactuation operator is formed on the yaw operator such that the actuationoperator rotates along with the yaw operator when the yaw operatorrotates.
 28. The surgical instrument of claim 9, wherein the connectoris bent one or more times while connecting the end tool and a pitchoperating axis of the operator.
 29. The surgical instrument of claim 8,wherein the operator comprises: a pitch operator controlling a pitchmotion of the end tool; and a jaw operator controlling rotation motionsof the first jaw and the second jaw.
 30. The surgical instrument ofclaim 29, wherein the jaw operator comprises: a first jaw operatorcomprising a first jaw operating bar controlling a rotation motion ofthe first jaw and a first jaw operating axis around which the first jawoperating bar rotates; and a second jaw operator comprising a second jawoperating bar controlling a rotation motion of the second jaw and asecond jaw operating axis around which the second jaw operating barrotates.
 31. The surgical instrument of claim 30, wherein when the firstjaw operating bar rotates around the first jaw operating axis, the firstjaw rotates in substantially the same direction as the first jawoperating bar with respect to the first jaw operating axis, and when thesecond jaw operating bar rotates around the second jaw operating axis,the second jaw rotates in substantially the same direction as the secondjaw operating bar with respect to the second jaw operating axis.
 32. Thesurgical instrument of claim 30, wherein when the pitch operator rotatesaround a pitch operating axis, the end tool rotates in the samedirection as the pitch operator with respect to the pitch operatingaxis.
 33. The surgical instrument of claim 30, wherein when the pitchoperator rotates around a pitch operating axis, the first jaw operatorand the second jaw operator rotate along with the pitch operator. 34.The surgical instrument of claim 9, wherein the connector is bent one ormore times while connecting the end tool and a pitch operating axis ofthe operator.
 35. The surgical instrument of claim 8, wherein the atleast one terminal free end includes a finger grip.
 36. The surgicalinstrument of claim 1, wherein the operating force transmitter comprisesa differential member comprising: two or more input units each receivingan input of an amount of rotation motion or translation motion; and anoutput unit outputting a single rotation motion or translation motionbased on rotation motions or translation motions input to the two ormore input units.
 37. The surgical instrument of claim 36, wherein thedifferential member comprises two or more input units, the output unit,and a differential control member connecting the two or more input unitsand the output unit, a rotation motion or translation motion of at leasta portion of the differential control member is generated by rotationmotions or translation motions input to the two or more input units, andthe output unit translates or rotates by a sum of or a differencebetween the rotation motions or translation motions input to the two ormore input units, by the rotation motion or translation motion of atleast a portion of the differential control member.
 38. The surgicalinstrument of claim 36, wherein the two or more input units rotate ortranslate independently.
 39. The surgical instrument of claim 36,wherein, in the differential member, when an amount of rotation motionor translation motion is input to only one of the two or more inputunits, the input rotation motion or translation motion is transmittedonly to the output unit.
 40. The surgical instrument of claim 36,wherein when an amount of rotation motion or translation motion is inputto each of the two or more input units, a sum of or a difference betweenthe rotation motions or translation motions input to the two or moreinput units is output through the output unit.
 41. The surgicalinstrument of claim 40, wherein the rotation motion or translationmotion output through the output unit is calculated by the followingequation:C=αA±βB where C denotes a rotation motion amount or translation motionamount output through the output unit, A and B denote rotation motionamounts or translation motion amounts input through the two or moreinput units, and a and 0 denote weights of the input amounts.
 42. Thesurgical instrument of claim 36, wherein the rotation motions ortranslation motions input to the two or more input units do notinterfere with each other.
 43. The surgical instrument of claim 36,wherein the differential member comprises: a first input unit comprisingtwo pulleys and a first input wire connecting the two pulleys andreceiving an input of a rotation amount through any one of the twopulleys; a second input unit comprising two pulleys and a second inputwire connecting the two pulleys and receiving an input of a rotationamount through any one of the two pulleys; a differential control membercomprising a differential control bar, two pulleys formed at both endsof the differential control bar, a differential control wire connectingthe two pulleys, a first differential joint at which the first inputwire and the differential control wire are coupled, and a seconddifferential joint at which the second input wire and the differentialcontrol wire are coupled; an output wire having both ends connected withthe differential control member; and the output unit connected with theoutput wire and rotated by the output wire when the output wire moves.44. The surgical instrument of claim 36, wherein the differential membercomprises: a first input unit and a second input unit receiving an inputof an amount of rotation motion or translation motion; a firstdifferential control member connected with the first input unit totranslate when the first input unit rotates or translates; a seconddifferential control member connected with the second input unit totranslate when the second input unit rotates or translates; adifferential wire wound around pulleys provided in the firstdifferential control member and the second differential control memberand having a portion at which at least one fixed end is formed; and theoutput unit connected with at least a portion of the differential wireto rotate when the differential wire moves.
 45. The surgical instrumentof claim 36, wherein the differential member comprises: a first inputunit and a second input unit formed to rotate independently of eachother to receive a rotation amount; the output unit comprising an outputpulley formed to rotate around a rotating axis, an extension portionformed to extend in one direction from the rotating axis of the outputpulley and rotate along with the output pulley, and a first differentialcontrol pulley and a second differential control pulley formed at oneend portion of the extension portion, formed to rotate around an axismaking an angle with the rotating axis of the output pulley, and formedto face each other; and a differential control wire connecting the firstinput unit, the first differential control pulley, the second inputunit, and the second differential control pulley.
 46. The surgicalinstrument of claim 36, wherein the differential member comprises: afirst input unit comprising a first rotating axis and a first inputpulley rotating along with the first rotating axis; a second input unitcomprising a plurality of second input pulleys formed to connect withthe first input pulley on one side of the first input unit, formed toface each other, and formed to rotate around a second rotating axis; theconnector comprising a plurality of connecting pulleys formed to faceeach other on one side of the second input unit and formed to rotatearound a fourth rotating axis; the output unit connecting with theconnector and rotating along with a third rotating axis; and adifferential control wire formed to sequentially contact the outputunit, one of the two connecting pulleys, one of the two second inputpulleys, the first input pulley, the other of the two second inputpulleys, the other of the two connecting pulleys, and the output unitand rotate along the output unit, the connector, the second input unit,and the first input unit.
 47. The surgical instrument of claim 36,wherein the operating force transmitter comprises one or moredifferential gears each comprising: the two or more input unitsreceiving an input of a rotation amount from the operator; and theoutput unit outputting a single rotation amount based on the rotationamounts input to the two or more input units wherein the first gear andthe second gear function as a rack, and the differential control gearfunctions as a pinion.
 48. The surgical instrument of claim 36, whereinthe at least one terminal free end includes a finger grip.
 49. Thesurgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the end tool comprises a firstjaw and a second jaw formed to rotate, the operating force transmittercomprises a first jaw operating wire connected with the operator totransmit a rotation of the operator to the first jaw and a second jawoperating wire connected with the operator to transmit a rotation of theoperator to the second jaw, the operator comprises a pitch operatorcontrolling a pitch motion of the end tool, a yaw operator controlling ayaw motion of the end tool, and an actuation operator performing controlsuch that the first and second jaws of the end tool rotate in oppositedirections, wherein the yaw operator and the actuation operator areformed to rotate independently, the operating force transmitter furthercomprises a first differential member comprising two input unitsreceiving an input of a rotation amount from the yaw operator and anactuation actuator and an output unit outputting and transmitting asingle rotation amount to the first jaw operating wire based on therotation amounts input to the two input units, and a second differentialmember comprising two input units receiving an input of a rotationamount from the yaw operator and the actuation actuator and an outputunit outputting and transmitting a single rotation amount to the secondjaw operating wire based on the rotation amounts input to the two inputunits, the end tool further comprises an end tool control membercontacting at least a portion of the first jaw operating wire and thesecond jaw operating wire and coupled with the first jaw and the secondjaw, the operator further comprises an operator control membercontacting at least a portion of the first jaw operating wire and thesecond jaw operating wire and formed to be symmetrical to the end toolcontrol member about the connector, when the pitch operator rotates, thefirst jaw and the second jaw of the end tool rotate in the samedirection as the rotation direction of the pitch operator, when the yawoperator rotates, the rotation of the yaw operator is transmitted to thefirst jaw through the first differential member connected with the yawoperator and the first jaw operating wire connected therewith and isalso transmitted to the second jaw through the second differentialmember connected with the yaw operator and the second jaw operating wireconnected therewith such that the first jaw and the second jaw rotate inthe same direction as the rotation direction of the yaw operator, andwhen the actuation operator rotates, the rotation of the actuationoperator is transmitted to the first jaw through the first differentialmember connected with the actuation operator and the first jaw operatingwire connected therewith and is also transmitted to the second jawthrough the second differential member connected with the actuationoperator and the second jaw operating wire connected therewith such thatthe first jaw and the second jaw rotate in opposite directions.
 50. Thesurgical instrument of claim 49, wherein any one of a first yaw-operatorwire connecting the yaw operator and the first differential member and afirst actuation-operator wire connecting the actuation operator and thefirst differential member is twisted one or more times.
 51. The surgicalinstrument of claim 49, wherein the end tool further comprises a pitchpulley rotating around a pitch rotating axis of the first jaw and thesecond jaw, and the operating force transmitter further comprises apitch wire wound around the pitch pulley and connected with the operatorto transmit a pitch motion of the operator to the pitch pulley.
 52. Thesurgical instrument of claim 49, wherein the at least one terminal freeend includes a finger grip.
 53. The surgical instrument of claim 1,wherein the end tool comprises a first jaw and a second jaw formed torotate, the operating force transmitter comprises a first jaw operatingwire connected with the operator to transmit a rotation of the operatorto the first jaw and a second jaw operating wire connected with theoperator to transmit a rotation of the operator to the second jaw, theoperator comprises a pitch operator controlling a pitch motion of theend tool, a yaw operator controlling a yaw motion of the end tool, andan actuation operator performing control such that the first and secondjaws of the end tool rotate in opposite directions, wherein theactuation operator is formed to extend in one direction from the yawoperator to rotate along with the yaw operator and also rotate around anactuation operating axis of the actuation operator when the yaw operatorrotates, the operator further comprises a first yaw-actuation operatingpulley formed to rotate around a yaw operating axis of the yaw operatorand connected with the first jaw operating wire, a second yaw-actuationoperating pulley formed to rotate around a yaw operating axis of the yawoperator and connected with the second jaw operating wire, a firstactuation operating pulley formed to rotate around an actuationoperating axis of the actuation operator and connected with the firstyaw-actuation operating pulley through a wire, and a second actuationoperating pulley formed to rotate around an actuation operating axis ofthe actuation operator and connected with the second yaw-actuationoperating pulley through a second wire, the end tool further comprisesan end tool control member contacting at least a portion of the firstjaw operating wire and the second jaw operating wire and coupled withthe first jaw and the second jaw, the operator further comprises anoperator control member contacting at least a portion of the first jawoperating wire and the second jaw operating wire and formed to besymmetrical to the end tool control member about the connector, when thepitch operator rotates, the first jaw and the second jaw of the end toolrotate in the same direction as the rotation direction of the pitchoperator, when the yaw operator rotates, the actuation operator rotatesalong with the yaw operator, and the first actuation operating pulley ofthe actuation operator and the first yaw-actuation operating pulleyconnected with the first actuation operating pulley rotate to transmitthe rotation of the yaw operator to the first jaw connected with thefirst yaw-actuation operating pulley, and also the actuation operatorrotates along with the yaw operator and the second actuation operatingpulley of the actuation operator and the second yaw-actuation operatingpulley connected therewith rotate to transmit the rotation of the yawoperator to the second jaw connected with the second yaw-actuationoperating pulley such that the first jaw and the second jaw rotate inthe same direction as the rotation direction of the yaw operator, andwhen the actuation operator rotates, the first actuation operatingpulley of the actuation operator and the first yaw-actuation operatingpulley connected therewith rotate to transmit the rotation of theactuation operator to the first jaw connected with the firstyaw-actuation operating pulley, and also the second actuation operatingpulley of the actuation operator and the second yaw-actuation operatingpulley connected therewith rotate to transmit the rotation of theactuation operator to the second jaw connected with the secondyaw-actuation operating pulley such that the first jaw and the secondjaw rotate in opposite directions.
 54. The surgical instrument of claim53, wherein the end tool further comprises a pitch pulley rotatingaround a pitch rotating axis of the first jaw and the second jaw, andthe operating force transmitter further comprises a pitch wire woundaround the pitch pulley and connected with the operator to transmit apitch motion of the operator to the pitch pulley.
 55. The surgicalinstrument of claim 53, wherein the at least one terminal free endincludes a finger grip.
 56. The surgical instrument of claim 1, whereinthe end tool comprises a first jaw and a second jaw formed to rotate,the operating force transmitter comprises a first jaw operating wireconnected with the operator to transmit a rotation of the operator tothe first jaw and a second jaw operating wire connected with theoperator to transmit a rotation of the operator to the second jaw, theoperator comprises a pitch operator controlling a pitch motion of theend tool, a first jaw operator controlling a rotation motion of thefirst jaw, and a second jaw operator controlling a rotation motion ofthe second jaw, the end tool further comprises an end tool controlmember contacting at least a portion of the first jaw operating wire andthe second jaw operating wire and coupled with the first jaw and thesecond jaw, the operator further comprises an operator control membercontacting at least a portion of the first jaw operating wire and thesecond jaw operating wire and formed to be symmetrical to the end toolcontrol member about the connector, when the pitch operator rotates, thefirst jaw and the second jaw of the end tool rotate in the samedirection as the rotation direction of the pitch operator, when thefirst jaw operator rotates, the rotation of the first jaw operator istransmitted to the first jaw through the first jaw operating wireconnected with the first jaw operator, and when the second jaw operatorrotates, the rotation of the second jaw operator is transmitted to thesecond jaw through the second jaw operating wire connected with thesecond jaw operator.
 57. The surgical instrument of claim 56, whereinthe end tool further comprises a pitch pulley rotating around a pitchrotating axis of the first jaw and the second jaw, and the operatingforce transmitter further comprises a pitch wire wound around the pitchpulley and connected with the operator to transmit a pitch motion of theoperator to the pitch pulley.
 58. The surgical instrument of claim 56,wherein the at least one terminal free end includes a finger grip. 59.The surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the end tool comprises afirst jaw and a second jaw formed to rotate, the operating forcetransmitter comprises a pitch wire connected with the operator totransmit a pitch motion of the operator to the end tool, a yaw wireconnected with the operator to transmit a yaw motion of the operator tothe end tool, and an actuation wire connected with the operator totransmit an actuation motion of the operator to the end tool, the endtool further comprises a yaw pulley which is connected with the firstjaw and the second jaw and around which the yaw wire is wound, and apitch pulley which is formed on one side of the yaw pulley and aroundwhich the pitch wire is wound, the operator comprises a pitch operatorcontrolling a pitch motion of the end tool, a yaw operator controlling ayaw motion of the end tool, and an actuation operator performing controlsuch that the first and second jaws of the end tool rotate in oppositedirections, wherein the yaw operator and the actuation operator areformed to rotate independently, the operator further comprises a pitchoperating pulley rotating along with the pitch operator when the pitchoperator rotates, a yaw-pitch pulley rotating along with the pitchoperator when the pitch operator rotates and rotating along with the yawoperator when the yaw operator rotates, and an actuation-pitch pulleyrotating along with the pitch operator when the pitch operator rotatesand rotating along with the actuation operator when the actuationoperator rotates, the operating force transmitter further comprises afirst differential member comprising two input units receiving an inputof a rotation amount from the pitch operating pulley and the yaw-pitchpulley and an output unit outputting and transmitting a single rotationamount to the yaw wire based on the rotation amounts input to the twoinput units, and a second differential member comprising two input unitsreceiving an input of a rotation amount from the pitch operating pulleyand the actuation-pitch pulley and an output unit outputting andtransmitting a single rotation amount to the actuation wire based on therotation amounts input to the two input units, when the pitch operatorrotates, the rotation of the pitch operator is transmitted to the pitchpulley, the first jaw, and the second jaw through the pitch wire suchthat the first jaw and the second jaw rotate in the same direction asthe rotation direction of the pitch operator, when the yaw operatorrotates, the rotation of the yaw operator is transmitted to the yawpulley, the first jaw, and the second jaw through the first differentialmember connected with the yaw-pitch pulley and the yaw wire connectedtherewith such that the first jaw and the second jaw rotate in the samedirection as the rotation direction of the yaw operator, and when theactuation operator rotates, the rotation of the actuation operator istransmitted to the first jaw and the second jaw through the seconddifferential member connected with the actuation-pitch pulley and theactuation wire connected therewith such that the first jaw and thesecond jaw rotate in opposite directions.
 60. The surgical instrument ofclaim 59, wherein the at least one terminal free end includes a fingergrip.
 61. The surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the end toolcomprises a first jaw and a second jaw formed to rotate, the operatingforce transmitter comprises a pitch wire connected with the operator totransmit a pitch motion of the operator to the end tool, a yaw wireconnected with the operator to transmit a yaw motion of the operator tothe end tool, and an actuation wire connected with the operator totransmit an actuation motion of the operator to the end tool, the endtool further comprises a yaw pulley which is connected with the firstjaw and the second jaw and around which the yaw wire is wound, and apitch pulley which is formed on one side of the yaw pulley and aroundwhich the pitch wire is wound, the operator comprises a pitch operatorcontrolling a pitch motion of the end tool, a yaw operator controlling ayaw motion of the end tool, and an actuation operator performing controlsuch that the first and second jaws of the end tool rotate in oppositedirections, wherein the actuation operator is formed to extend in onedirection from the yaw operator such that the actuation operator rotatesalong with the yaw operator and also rotates around an actuationoperating axis of the actuation operator when the yaw operator rotates,the operator further comprises a pitch operating pulley rotating alongwith the pitch operator when the pitch operator rotates, a yaw-pitchpulley rotating along with the pitch operator when the pitch operatorrotates and rotating along with the yaw operator when the yaw operatorrotates, and an actuation-yaw-pitch pulley rotating along with the pitchoperator when the pitch operator rotates, rotating along with the yawoperator when the yaw operator rotates, and rotating along with theactuation operator when the actuation operator rotates, the operatorfurther comprises a yaw operating pulley formed at the yaw operator torotate along with the yaw operator and connected with the yaw-pitchpulley, a yaw-actuation operating pulley formed to rotate around a yawoperating axis of the yaw operator and connected with theactuation-yaw-pitch pulley, and an actuation operating pulley formed torotate around an actuation operating axis of the actuation operator andconnected with the yaw-actuation operating pulley through a wire, theoperating force transmitter further comprises a first differentialmember comprising two input units receiving an input of a rotationamount from the pitch operating pulley and the yaw-pitch pulley and anoutput unit outputting and transmitting a single rotation amount to theyaw wire based on the rotation amounts input to the two input units, anda second differential member comprising two input units receiving aninput of a rotation amount from the yaw-pitch pulley and theactuation-yaw-pitch pulley and an output unit outputting andtransmitting a single rotation amount to the actuation wire based on therotation amounts input to the two input units, when the pitch operatorrotates, the rotation of the pitch operator is transmitted to the pitchpulley, the first jaw, and the second jaw through the pitch wire suchthat the first jaw and the second jaw rotate in the same direction asthe rotation direction of the pitch operator, when the yaw operatorrotates, the rotation of the yaw operator is transmitted to the yawpulley, the first jaw, and the second jaw through the yaw operatingpulley, the yaw-pitch pulley, the first differential member, and the yawwire connected therewith such that the first jaw and the second jawrotate in the same direction as the rotation direction of the yawoperator, and when the actuation operator rotates, the rotation of theactuation operator is transmitted to the first jaw and the second jawthrough the actuation operating pulley, the yaw-actuation operatingpulley, the actuation-yaw-pitch pulley, the second differential member,and the actuation wire connected therewith such that the first jaw andthe second jaw rotate in opposite directions.
 62. The surgicalinstrument of claim 61, wherein the at least one terminal free endincludes a finger grip.
 63. The surgical instrument of claim 1, whereinthe end tool comprises a first jaw and a second jaw formed to rotate,the operating force transmitter comprises a pitch wire connected withthe operator to transmit a pitch motion of the operator to the end tool,a yaw wire connected with the operator to transmit a yaw motion of theoperator to the end tool, and an actuation wire connected with theoperator to transmit an actuation motion of the operator to the endtool, the end tool further comprises a yaw pulley which is connectedwith the first jaw and the second jaw and around which the yaw wire iswound, and a pitch pulley which is formed on one side of the yaw pulleyand around which the pitch wire is wound, the operator comprises a pitchoperator controlling a pitch motion of the end tool, a first jawoperator controlling a rotation motion of the first jaw, and a secondjaw operator controlling a rotation motion of the second jaw, theoperator further comprises a first first-jaw-pitch pulley rotating alongwith the pitch operator when the pitch operator rotates and rotatingalong with the first jaw operator when the first jaw operator rotates, asecond first-jaw-pitch pulley rotating along with the pitch operatorwhen the pitch operator rotates and rotating in a direction opposite tothe rotation direction of the first first-jaw-pitch pulley when thefirst jaw operator rotates, and a first second-jaw-pitch pulley rotatingalong with the pitch operator when the pitch operator rotates androtating along with the second jaw operator when the second jaw operatorrotates, the operating force transmitter further comprises a firstdifferential member comprising two input units receiving an input of arotation amount from the first second-jaw-pitch pulley and the secondfirst-jaw-pitch pulley and an output unit outputting and transmitting asingle rotation amount to the yaw wire based on the rotation amountsinput to the two input units, and a second differential membercomprising two input units receiving an input of a rotation amount fromthe first first-jaw-pitch pulley and the first second-jaw-pitch pulleyand an output unit outputting and transmitting a single rotation amountto the actuation wire based on the rotation amounts input to the twoinput units, when the pitch operator rotates, the rotation of the pitchoperator is transmitted to the pitch pulley, the first jaw, and thesecond jaw through the pitch wire such that the first jaw and the secondjaw rotate in the same direction as the rotation direction of the pitchoperator, when the first jaw operator rotates, the rotation of the firstjaw operator is transmitted to the first jaw and the second jaw throughthe second first-jaw-pitch pulley connected with the first jaw operator,the first differential member, the yaw wire, and the yaw pulley and isalso transmitted to the first jaw and the second jaw through the firstfirst-jaw-pitch pulley connected with the first jaw operator, the seconddifferential member, and the actuation wire, and when the second jawoperator rotates, the rotation of the second jaw operator is transmittedto the first jaw and the second jaw through the first second-jaw-pitchpulley connected with the second jaw operator, the first differentialmember, the yaw wire, and the yaw pulley and is also transmitted to thefirst jaw and the second jaw through the first second-jaw-pitch pulleyconnected with the second jaw operator, the second differential member,and the actuation wire.
 64. The surgical instrument of claim 63, whereinthe at least one terminal free end includes a finger grip.
 65. Thesurgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the end tool comprises a firstjaw and a second jaw formed to rotate, the operating force transmittercomprises a pitch wire connected with the operator to transmit a pitchmotion of the operator to the end tool, a first jaw operating wireconnected with the operator to transmit a rotation of the operator tothe first jaw, and a second jaw operating wire connected with theoperator to transmit a rotation of the operator to the second jaw, theend tool further comprises a pitch pulley which is connected with thefirst jaw and the second jaw and around which the pitch wire is wound,the operator comprises a pitch operator controlling a pitch motion ofthe end tool, a yaw operator controlling a yaw motion of the end tool,and an actuation operator performing control such that the first andsecond jaws of the end tool rotate in opposite directions, wherein theyaw operator and the actuation operator are formed to rotateindependently, the operator further comprises a yaw-pitch pulleyrotating along with the pitch operator when the pitch operator rotatesand rotating along with the yaw operator when the yaw operator rotates,an actuation-pitch pulley rotating along with the pitch operator whenthe pitch operator rotates and rotating along with the actuationoperator when the actuation operator rotates, and an actuation-pitchadditional pulley rotating along with the pitch operator when the pitchoperator rotates and rotating in a direction opposite to the rotationdirection of the actuation-pitch pulley when the actuation operatorrotates, the operating force transmitter further comprises a firstdifferential member comprising two input units receiving an input of arotation amount from the yaw-pitch pulley and the actuation-pitchadditional pulley and an output unit outputting and transmitting asingle rotation amount to the first jaw operating wire based on therotation amounts input to the two input units, and a second differentialmember comprising two input units receiving an input of a rotationamount from the yaw-pitch pulley and the actuation-pitch pulley and anoutput unit outputting and transmitting a single rotation amount to thesecond jaw operating wire based on the rotation amounts input to the twoinput units, when the pitch operator rotates, the rotation of the pitchoperator is transmitted to the pitch pulley, the first jaw, and thesecond jaw through the pitch wire such that the first jaw and the secondjaw rotate in the same direction as the rotation direction of the pitchoperator, when the yaw operator rotates, the rotation of the yawoperator is transmitted to the first jaw through the first differentialmember connected with the yaw-pitch pulley and the first jaw operatingwire connected therewith and is also transmitted to the second jawthrough the second differential member connected with the yaw-pitchpulley and the second jaw operating wire connected therewith such thatthe first jaw and the second jaw rotate in the same direction as therotation direction of the yaw operator, and when the actuation operatorrotates, the rotation of the actuation operator is transmitted to thefirst jaw through the first differential member connected with theactuation-pitch additional pulley and the first jaw operating wireconnected therewith and is also transmitted to the second jaw throughthe second differential member connected with the actuation-pitch pulleyand the second jaw operating wire connected therewith such that thefirst jaw and the second jaw rotate in opposite directions.
 66. Thesurgical instrument of claim 65, wherein the at least one terminal freeend includes a finger grip.
 67. The surgical instrument of claim 1,wherein the end tool comprises a first jaw and a second jaw formed torotate, the operating force transmitter comprises a pitch wire connectedwith the operator to transmit a pitch motion of the operator to the endtool, a first jaw operating wire connected with the operator to transmita rotation of the operator to the first jaw, and a second jaw operatingwire connected with the operator to transmit a rotation of the operatorto the second jaw, the end tool further comprises a pitch pulley whichis connected with the first jaw and the second jaw and around which thepitch wire is wound, the operator comprises a pitch operator controllinga pitch motion of the end tool, a yaw operator controlling a yaw motionof the end tool, and an actuation operator performing control such thatthe first and second jaws of the end tool rotate in opposite directions,wherein the actuation operator is formed to extend in one direction fromthe yaw operator such that the actuation operator rotates along with theyaw operator and also rotates around an actuation operating axis of theactuation operator when the yaw operator rotates, the operator furthercomprises a pitch operating pulley rotating along with the pitchoperator when the pitch operator rotates, a first actuation-yaw-pitchpulley rotating along with the pitch operator when the pitch operatorrotates, rotating along with the yaw operator when the yaw operatorrotates, and rotating along with the actuation operator when theactuation operator rotates, and a second actuation-yaw-pitch pulleyrotating along with the pitch operator when the pitch operator rotates,rotating along with the yaw operator when the yaw operator rotates, androtating in a direction opposite to the rotation direction of the firstactuation-yaw-pitch pulley when the actuation operator rotates, theoperator further comprises a first yaw-actuation operating pulley formedto rotate around a yaw operating axis of the yaw operator and connectedwith the first actuation-yaw-pitch pulley, a second yaw-actuationoperating pulley formed to rotate around a yaw operating axis of the yawoperator and connected with the second actuation-yaw-pitch pulley, afirst actuation operating pulley formed to rotate around an actuationoperating axis of the actuation operator and connected with the firstyaw-actuation operating pulley through a wire, and a second actuationoperating pulley formed to rotate around an actuation operating axis ofthe actuation operator and connected with the second yaw-actuationoperating pulley through a wire, the operating force transmitter furthercomprises a first differential member comprising two input unitsreceiving an input of a rotation amount from the firstactuation-yaw-pitch pulley and the pitch pulley and an output unitoutputting and transmitting a single rotation amount to the first jawoperating wire based on the rotation amounts input to the two inputunits, and a second differential member comprising two input unitsreceiving an input of a rotation amount from the secondactuation-yaw-pitch pulley and the pitch pulley and an output unitoutputting and transmitting a single rotation amount to the second jawoperating wire based on the rotation amounts input to the two inputunits, when the pitch operator rotates, the rotation of the pitchoperator is transmitted to the pitch pulley, the first jaw, and thesecond jaw through the pitch wire such that the first jaw and the secondjaw rotate in the same direction as the rotation direction of the pitchoperator, when the yaw operator rotates, the actuation operator rotatesalong with the yaw operator to transmit the rotation of the yaw operatorto the first jaw through the first actuation operating pulley of theactuation operator, the first yaw-actuation operating pulley, the firstactuation-yaw-pitch pulley, the first differential member, and the firstjaw operating wire, and also the actuation operator rotates along withthe yaw operator to transmit the rotation of the yaw operator to thesecond jaw through the second actuation operating pulley of theactuation operator, the second yaw-actuation operating pulley, thesecond actuation-yaw-pitch pulley, the second differential member, andthe second jaw operating wire such that the first jaw and the second jawrotate in the same direction as the rotation direction of the yawoperator, and when the actuation operator rotates, the rotation of theactuation operator is transmitted to the first jaw through the firstactuation operating pulley of the actuation operator, the firstyaw-actuation operating pulley, the first actuation-yaw-pitch pulley,the first differential member, and the first jaw operating wire and isalso transmitted to the second jaw through the second actuationoperating pulley of the actuation operator, the second yaw-actuationoperating pulley, the second actuation-yaw-pitch pulley, the seconddifferential member, and the second jaw operating wire such that thefirst jaw and the second jaw rotate in opposite directions.
 68. Thesurgical instrument of claim 67, wherein the at least one terminal freeend includes a finger grip.
 69. The surgical instrument of claim 1,wherein the end tool comprises a first jaw and a second jaw formed torotate, the operating force transmitter comprises a pitch wire connectedwith the operator to transmit a pitch motion of the operator to the endtool, a first jaw operating wire connected with the operator to transmita rotation of the operator to the first jaw, and a second jaw operatingwire connected with the operator to transmit a rotation of the operatorto the second jaw, the end tool further comprises a pitch pulley whichis connected with the first jaw and the second jaw and around which thepitch wire is wound, the operator comprises a pitch operator controllinga pitch motion of the end tool, a first jaw operator controlling arotation motion of the first jaw, and a second jaw operator controllinga rotation motion of the second jaw, the operator further comprises apitch operating pulley rotating along with the pitch operator when thepitch operator rotates, a first first-jaw-pitch pulley rotating alongwith the pitch operator when the pitch operator rotates and rotatingalong with the first jaw operator when the first jaw operator rotates,and a first second-jaw-pitch pulley rotating along with the pitchoperator when the pitch operator rotates and rotating along with thesecond jaw operator when the second jaw operator rotates, the operatingforce transmitter further comprises a first differential membercomprising two input units receiving an input of a rotation amount fromthe pitch operating pulley and the first first-jaw-pitch pulley and anoutput unit outputting and transmitting a single rotation amount to thefirst jaw operating wire based on the rotation amounts input to the twoinput units, and a second differential member comprising two input unitsreceiving an input of a rotation amount from the pitch operating pulleyand the first second-jaw-pitch pulley and an output unit outputting andtransmitting a single rotation amount to the second jaw operating wirebased on the rotation amounts input to the two input units, when thepitch operator rotates, the rotation of the pitch operator istransmitted to the pitch pulley, the first jaw, and the second jawthrough the pitch wire such that the first jaw and the second jaw rotatein the same direction as the rotation direction of the pitch operator,when the first jaw operator rotates, the rotation of the first jawoperator is transmitted to the first jaw through the first differentialmember connected with the first first-jaw-pitch pulley and the first jawoperating wire connected therewith such that the first jaw rotates inthe same direction as the rotation direction of the first jaw operator,and when the second jaw operator rotates, the rotation of the second jawoperator is transmitted to the second jaw through the seconddifferential member connected with the first second-jaw-pitch pulley andthe second jaw operating wire connected therewith such that the secondjaw rotates in the same direction as the rotation direction of thesecond jaw operator.
 70. The surgical instrument of claim 69, whereinthe at least one terminal free end includes a finger grip.
 71. Thesurgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the at least one terminal freeend includes a finger grip.
 72. The surgical instrument of claim 1,wherein the at least one terminal free end is closer to the end toolthan the first end of the connection end.
 73. The surgical instrument ofclaim 1, wherein the at least one terminal free end of the operatorrotates from left to right or from right to left, the end tool rotatesfrom left to right or from right to left, respectively.
 74. The surgicalinstrument of claim 1, wherein the at least one terminal free end of theoperator rotates up-down or down-up direction, the end tool rotates insubstantially the same direction relative to the first direction,respectively.
 75. The surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the atleast one terminal free end of the operator rotates right, left, up,down, or any combination thereof, the end tool rotates in substantiallythe same direction relative to the first direction, respectively. 76.The surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein while the at least oneterminal free end of the operator and the end tool rotate, the at leastone terminal free end of the operator and the end tool rotate insubstantially the same direction relative to the first direction but notin an identical direction on a three-dimensional coordinate system. 77.The surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein while the at least oneterminal free end of the operator and the end tool rotate, the at leastone terminal free end of the operator and the end tool rotate insubstantially the same direction relative to the first direction and inan identical direction on a three-dimensional coordinate system.